


Hiroko's Magical Daycare

by tbiris



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Kid Fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-07-23 15:47:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 26,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16161992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tbiris/pseuds/tbiris
Summary: A collection of stories that leads to Hiroko starting a daycare.A specific daycare for children of all kinds and ages. Even some older than her.





	1. When First We Met

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! So this is a fun project I was working on with the lovely roserelease! (Link pending actual net working bleh).
> 
> It was kinda supposed to be just a bunch of fluff but well... it definitely didn't end up like that? I hope you enjoy it regardless! Chapters will (hopefully) be up on Mondays and Saturdays. At the very least there will be two chapters a week!
> 
> Without further adieu... Welcome to....
> 
>  
> 
>   
> 

Hiroko stared for a moment out at the sea. There were times where it called to her and slipped over her as a second skin. This time the call to land, the call to return was stronger, regardless of how home may have changed. Hiroko carefully folded her seal skin into a bag, as she had so many times before. She caressed it before closing the bag. She appeared the same way as when she left, but she never once felt out of place in Hasetsu. With a last smile at the sea and a final check that her skin was out of sight but close at hand she walked towards the town. A place of warmer waters and warm people.  
   
 A small smile crossed her face; perhaps she would be able to see her aunt again. For some reason she missed the badgering about finding either a nice man or a seal to settle down. An even more wistful sigh over tea about the possibility of finding a nice male selkie. For once, the idea didn’t terrify her.  
   
 There was always one stop she made before officially going into town, but this time it was different. She paused at the edge of the beach. There was a tiny clearing, where just the sliver of the beach was always visible. That was where she and her aunt had buried her mother many years ago. It was marked only with the flowers that grew there, but now… Now there was another bundle of flowers, freshly planted.  
   
 Hiroko knelt and let her hands caress the petals of the new flowers. Blue for her mother, and red for her aunt. A soft sigh left her. She could only hope that her body wasn’t actually here, but went to sea as she always wanted. Hiroko was on her own now, but she swam in far more turbulent waters before alone. She clapped her hands once and bowed before taking strides towards the town.  
   
 The best thing about her extended trips was coming back and seeing what had changed, and what hadn’t. The streets were the same, some of the faces remained but many years older. A few recognised her and dipped their heads, pity in their eyes. There was no family left for her here, but it was still home.  
   
 “Hiroko-chan.” It was the smallest whisper that caught her ear and changed her path. The smile remained on her face as she sat next to an elderly man.  
 “Shiro-kun, it’s been a while.”  
 “Several years,” he nodded. “I always knew you were special.”  
 “No more than my mother.”  
 He nodded and looked at the sky. “Now I know why I felt I should be here. You should go to the Katsuki onsen.”  
 Hiroko’s brows furrowed. While she didn’t want to impose on her oldest friend, she didn’t see why he would offer that particular suggestion.  
 “Go, and come fish with me again before you go.” He gave her a little nudge.  
 “Always.” She smiled and bowed slightly to him. “I’ll call on you again soon.”  
 “Don’t scare my daughter-in-law too much!”  
   
 Hiroko smiled. “Shiro-kun, really. It’s been years since I’ve scared anyone.”  
 He snorted. “Doesn’t mean she doesn’t need it. Too many of our youngin’s are ignorant of the special things around them.”  
 Hiroko tilted her head. “Is that why you’re sending me to the Katsuki family?”  
 Shiro shook his head. “No.” He tapped the bench. “I think you’d get along with their son, Toshiya.”  
 Hiroko smiled. “Why, Shiro… I thought you had retired from matchmaking.”  
 “Bah,” Shiro looked away, towards the sky. “I saw all of my childhood friends married, made some good matches too. Why shouldn’t I do the same for you?”  
 Hiroko gave him a small bow. “It is appreciated,” she murmured. “All our friends did live long, happy lives.”  
 “Long sure enough.” Shiro cackled. “Some of them may have regretted that. Any of that your doing?”  
 Hiroko shrugged. If it was, she wasn’t aware of it. “Perhaps it’s the hot springs.”  
 Shiro smiled. “Well if it was, then you’re heading to one of the best.”  
   
 Hiroko smiled and nodded. “Thank you Shiro, perhaps I’ll come to visit.”  
 “Or I’ll visit.” A mischievous grin came across Shiro’s face, one she was more than familiar with from when they were children. He was planning something else, and she was a catalyst. She let out a small sigh and bowed before standing back up and walking towards the Katsuki inn.  
   
 Shiro was her constant reminder of how everything changed when she travelled. She was a little grateful that despite she missed her aunt’s passing, Shiro was still around. It would be a little more devastating to come back to a completely new town. Instead, she now had a direction. Even if her childhood friend decided to employ his matchmaking ways. She had been to all the weddings, seen more than a few of the children. Many moved, and she suspected that even more died in the war. That was a period of time that was terrifying no matter where she was. In the water, or out.  
   
 She paused at the foot of the stairs. Her aunt had told her stories about what happened, always with a slight twist to her mouth. Their community held different beliefs than their neighbours, so the Emperor’s proclamation didn’t shake them as much. But she could see the influences beginning to leak into the town. It was in the metal, the way the younger folk walked and talked, the whispers as she passed them.  
   
 She was different, she would always be different. Even as the sea called to her, so did people. Hiroko hummed an old sea tune she heard when she was little as she took the steps one by one and all their gazes fell away from her. The inn wasn’t very elevated from the town, but it didn’t stop her from feeling like the air had cleared at the top.  
   
 Shiro was right; this was indeed a nice, special place. A smile drifted onto her face, the very thought of the hotsprings was already enticing.  
 “Welcome!” A young man greeted her at the door, sweeping away the leaves that painted the ground.  
   
 It took Hiroko a few moments to realise exactly what she was seeing. It wasn’t Shiro in front of her, but his grandson. She allowed a smile to cross her face and gave a small nod.  
 “Is there space for a reservation tomorrow?”  
 The man paused and looked her up and down, a small smile on his face. “We do. Pardon my rudeness, but do you live here?”  
   
 Hiroko shook her head, a sad smile on her face. “I was born here, but I’ve been travelling for a while.” It was rude of her to just show up the same day for lodgings after all, but knowing that she would be able to stay for the remainder of the time was a great help. The clearing with their graves was well sheltered and she would be fine for a night. That or she could simply don her skin for a night and spend it in the water. She was resourceful.  
   
 He hesitated for a moment before leaning his broom against the side. “Please wait a moment.”  
 Hiroko blinked as the man disappeared inside, what on earth did he want her to wait for? Making a reservation should be relatively simple for one his age, shouldn’t it? She was beginning to worry when he finally came back out, a smile on his face.  
 “We have a room free tonight as well if you would like to stay.”  
 Hiroko’s eyes widened and she waved a hand. “I couldn’t impose.”  
 “Please do feel free to stay here tonight if you wish.”  
 “I couldn’t.”  
 “We do have the room available.”  
 Hiroko let out a soft sigh and smile. “Very well, I apologise for imposing.”  
 “Hardly, especially for obaa-chan’s family.”  
 Hiroko stared at him for a moment. “You knew Kaede?”  
 The man nodded, a sad smile on his face. “We can talk about that after you settle in. Please enjoy your time.”  
   
 Hiroko nodded. Perhaps she wasn’t being left alone after all. She gave a small shake of her head as she thought of Shiro-kun and Kaede. Just how much of this had they planned together?  
   
 ***  
   
 Days at the onsen were enjoyable as Toshiya depicted the days he would spent at Kaede’s, her patience with him and how much she would talk about her beautiful niece. He had an adorable blush on his face when he realised that Hiroko was said niece. In return she shared stories of her travels on a few of their moonlit walks. There were a few instances where she heard the crash of the waves and her instincts had her pause to stare at the ocean. It hurt from time to time to be called to one or the other and feel the constant pulling no matter where she was. But right now she was happy and that was all that ever mattered. She was grateful to her mother for teaching her how to deal with the pull. Everything in moderation. Her mother had also advised that if she ever wanted to settle down for a while, their hometown was best. While the supernaturals weren’t prominent, all the natives knew of their existence and were more open and understanding of certain quirks.  
   
 As such, Katsuki-kun always waited for her with a smile as she stared out at the water. It was the fifth time they were on such an outing before she said anything about it.  
 “Did Obaa-chan say anything about the ocean before she died?” Hiroko’s mother died in an accident at sea, so she didn’t know anything about normal death wishes of the selkies.  
 “She was worried about you.” Katsuki gave her a bit of a sheepish smile. “She actually told me to take care of you when you came back…”  
 Hiroko raised an eyebrow. “Is that so.”  
   
 Katsuki cleared his throat a little and turned slightly away. “I do enjoy spending time with you though.”  
 Hiroko blushed lightly and walked back to his side. She would have to make sure to pick out some wonderful fruit for Shiro, and some beautiful flowers for her mother and Kaede’s graves.  
 “I don’t mind.” She smiled at Katsuki. He was quite cute when he blushed like that.  
   
 **  
   
 She knew she would always remember that day under the sakura, the day she introduced Toshiya to her mother. It was the same day she met him at the sea as her true self. While no tears were shed as she spoke, she was grateful for the weight in her chest to dissipate when he drew her close.  
   
 But it was their time under the sakura that she truly treasured. While all their time together was precious, the sakura was the first time she realised how much Toshiya truly cared for her and what Shiro’s plan had been. It hadn’t been to set her up with someone else to stay with, somewhere to be safe. Shiro wasn’t joking about trying to make sure she was happy and safe. He had taught Toshiya well, down to the braid down her back filled with flowers. The only difference was that Shiro preferred white flowers in her hair.  
   
 That was the day she awoke wrapped up in her skin and a blanket, Toshiya braiding a flower chain beside her, his eyes on a group of children nearby.  
   
 Her mother and aunt warned her about leaving her skin unattended, especially around men. Her mother was quick to defend Hiroko’s father, but as far as Hiroko knew, Kaede never found her skin again and was torn from the water.  
   
 But here she was, wrapped in hers and he didn’t notice, or didn’t know what it meant to her. Her fingers tightened around one of the flippers. Handling their skin was akin to a proposal, but she had to calm down, because he _didn’t know_. Or she didn’t know if he knew.  
   
 How did she feel about it? What could she do? Hiroko closed her eyes and tried to breathe normally, to act normal and to appear asleep. It didn’t work, it only resulted in them packing up with several apologies. Some from the kids, who apologised for trying to steal her bag, and some from Toshiya for touching her skin. Toshiya was so apologetic that her heart sank.  
   
 Dinner was a somber affair with little discussion around the table. She had become quite comfortable with the Katsuki family, even helping in the kitchen on the odd days they were busy. She paid them regularly in the pearls she acquired during travel, but it still felt nice to work. Toshiya’s parents must have picked up on the odd atmosphere and left them alone instead of settling down to listen to the radio.  
 “I apologise for offending you.” Toshiya’s words were carefully chosen, and his eyes cast downward.  
   
 “It’s fine, you had no choice.” Hiroko’s eyes dropped to the table. “I apologise for my familiarity. Please just give me some time to adjust.” The silence ate at her until she flicked her eyes up for a moment. The puzzlement on Toshiya - Katsuki-kun’s face befuddled her.  
 “I invited the familiarity.” Toshiya’s voice was slow.  
 Hiroko paused for a moment before looking up and meeting his eyes. Perhaps… Just perhaps she should take the chance.  
 “What do you know of selkies, Toshiya?”  
 Toshiya shook his head. “Only what you’ve shared with me.”  
 Hiroko found it hard to believe that Shiro hadn’t shared any information with him, a little suspicious even.  
 “No stories even?”  
 Toshiya frowned. “Aren’t they just stories? If I believed all the stories about the people that lived here I would never sleep.”  
   
 Hiroko opened her mouth to protest, then stopped. He did have a fair point, especially as someone that lived here permanently. But where should she even begin?  
 “What’s true?”  
 She could have hugged Toshiya for helping her decide. What in the stories was true indeed.  
 “Well, you’ve seen that wearing my skin allows me to transform already.”  
 Toshiya nodded. It was another one of Hiroko’s treasured memories when he ran his hands down her pelt and they spent the day swimming at the beach.  
   
 Hiroko fingered the straps of her pack.  
 “Kaede couldn’t go back because her husband hid her pelt. So owning a pelt forces marriage, that’s true.” She made a face. “It isn’t true that we eat human flesh, I don’t know where that ridiculous rumour came from.”  
 “Probably from one of the men that stole a pelt,” Toshiya commented.  
 Hiroko nodded. “Our pelts… our sea life is part of us. We belong on land and we belong to the sea.” She didn’t know how to get across what a divide that was, how it felt to always be longing for the other.  
 “Giving another our pelt, letting them close to it…” Hiroko swallowed and forced herself to meet Toshiya’s eyes. “It’s a sign of trust. Or...” She sighed and looked at the sea again. “I’m botching this terribly.”  
 Toshiya took a step closer to her. Hiroko could feel his eyes alight onto her skin, warming her.  
   
  “The…” Toshiya grimaced. “Is it the ownership of the pelt that requires marriage?”  
 Hiroko shrugged. “Of sorts? But when I knew you had touched my pelt… and given it to me…” Hiroko swallowed, tears welling in her eyes.  
 She turned back to look at the ocean. “I’ve never been so happy. And then…”  
 “And then I apologised…” Toshiya finished. He turned with her to watch the sunset, the wind drifting the sakura blossoms as if the kami were painting a picture.  
 “It has never been my intention to harm you, by action or words.”  
 Hiroko nodded, she knew from when he returned the pelt to her that he thought of her first and foremost. At least until his apology that she misunderstood.  
 “I hope that we can watch the sunset together in the years to come,” she murmured. Toshiya didn’t answer her, she didn’t expect him to. It was a heavy decision as he stood to inherit the onsen, he was part of the lifeblood of the town.  
   
 Three weeks later though, she was rather annoyed by his lack of an answer. The call of the sea was beckoning to her, but she didn’t know if she could bear leaving without an answer. Without knowing if she could come back here. Her attempts to get Toshiya alone were met by Shiro, Toshiya’s parents and her own damned call to the sea. She even left her pelt in the room, a reminder of her offer.  
   
 She knew she truly beyond a doubt loved him when she found her pelt tucked neatly under a pillow when the futons were set out for the night. Tucked away safely. It hurt even more that even Shiro didn’t want her to talk to Toshiya now, when he had facilitated their meeting.  
   
 The last time she had cried herself to sleep was the night her mother died. She found the feeling very similar as she began to accept her broken heart. She would go for a while and accept that she and Toshiya would simply be friends. She would travel the world once more and learn what changes happened beyond the island.  
   
 In the morning, she would say goodbye.  
   
 There was a stillness to the morning, a heavy resoluteness as she packed away her things, sealing them carefully against the water. They may not want her to visit again after all. She managed to smile throughout most of breakfast before breaking the news.  
   
 “I’ll be heading out this afternoon.”  
 Katsuki-chan patted her hand with a smile. “Of course, come back soon.”  
 Hiroko shook her head, her smile becoming a little more forced. “It may not be soon.” She was glad that she waited until the end of breakfast as the atmosphere grew more sorrowful.  
 “How long?” Toshiya didn’t look up from the table.  
 “Who knows!” Hiroko faked the cheer. “It depends on where the sea takes me.” Long ago, she would leave her aunt’s saying almost the same thing. She could remember it clearly but with one word different. ‘It depends on where love takes me.’  
   
 She wouldn’t be coming back here for a while, not until she recovered from her worn heart.  
 “I see.” There was a hoarseness to Toshiya’s voice. “You can always come home to here.”  
 Hiroko swallowed the tears she felt. “It isn’t my home, though.”  
 Toshiya nodded. “A place for you to rest, always. I… We could never keep you from the ocean.”  
   
 Hiroko’s heart stopped for a moment. There was something there that felt wrong, felt off.  
 “Toshiya.”  
 He looked up at her, eyes brimming with unshed tears.  
 “Toshiya… I will always live torn between the ocean and the land. Right now… right now there’s nothing that keeps me in one or the other.” She swallowed. Perhaps… perhaps it was worth the risk. She undid her pack, and took her pelt in hand, holding it out to Toshiya. There were eyes on them, she felt them boring into her and her declaration. She was exposed now, everyone in Hasetsu would know that the Watanabe’s were selkies.  
   
 “I would love to once again have a place to live, to work, and to call home.”  
 Toshiya’s eyes went wide and he backed up. “I can’t impose on you.”  
 Hiroko had no idea quite what happened until she practically shoved her pelt into Toshiya’s hands. She had a feeling she was entirely rude and blunt, and had an odd feeling the word love was thrown in there somewhere.  
   
 But then, there were tears down both of their faces, and Hiroko’s heart sang when Toshiya’s hands closed over her pelt, hugging it to his chest.  
 “I can’t imagine a sunset without you.”


	2. Once Upon A Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiroko makes some introductions and has a bit of a fright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oomph sorry this is going up late and there weren't posts right after the first one went up. I spent most of the week recovering from a wedding and half the things I wanted to get done this week didn't get done. So there is a double update today, and there will be a double update on Monday as well and then the schedule should resume as normal.

 “Tell it again!” Mari nudged Hiroko, her small feet pattered against the futon.  
 Hiroko smiled. Her eldest had just gotten to the age of curiosity. Well, there was never an age children weren’t curious. But her current interest was about supernaturals, and more importantly how they interacted with others. So naturally Hiroko had to tell her children about how she met their father. She wasn’t certain how much of it little Yuuri was able to understand, he seemed to get distracted during some parts of the story and was far more interested in the pelt she had brought out to show them.  
   
 She was feeling a little melancholy that she wasn’t able to take Mari beyond the beach and into the wider waters. There was still some time before either of her children might show their inheritance, though. Hiroko herself was around ten when her pelt developed. She had no idea what might happen in this case since she and her children actually had access to her pelt. She didn’t know if either of them would grow to be selkies, but if they did she would be able to teach them directly. It would be nice to play with them in the ocean when she felt her next call to the sea. Perhaps they could all have a bonding moment and let them get used to her other form.  
   
 She held both of them close to her as she started retelling the story, Yuuri was reaching out still to touch her pelt. It was one of Mari’s favourite bedtime stories, only now she knew the entire truth behind it. She was old enough now. Hiroko rubbed Yuuri’s back as he continued to flail towards the pelt, but with far less energy now.  
 “Can he stay here again?” Mari begged. Hiroko was ever grateful for how much Mari was willing to look after her younger brother. It was uncommon for her to come in to wake them both up and for Mari to not be near or even hugging her baby brother.  
   
 Hiroko just wasn’t sure how separating the two of them would go as they got older and their differences became more obvious. She only hoped they would still love each other and care for each other as they did now. She let herself have one last glance as Yuuri curled up on her pelt, nuzzling into the fur as Mari murmured a quiet lullaby to him, her own voice slowly fading as her eyes drifted shut.  
   
 There was a noisy silence through the onsen as the night shifted and the children went to bed. She still had work to do, and Toshiya always liked to poke into the children’s room for a moment at least. She still had no idea how she was so lucky to have him beside her. The nice thing as well was her call to land was slightly louder thanks to their children. She was content with just the odd day at the beach, never going too far, and maybe she could start playing with Mari and Yuuri like that. She would have to ask Toshiya what he thought.  
   
 It wasn’t easy for them figuring out the balance when she had Mari, but it was far easier after having Yuuri. It helped that Mari practically doted on her little brother, holding him up as he stumbled through his first steps, carting him around when there was something he wanted to see. Yes, she would bring them to the beach tomorrow to play. She glanced over at Toshiya, a smile playing on her lips. “What do you think about taking the children out to the beach tomorrow?”  
 Toshiya raised a single eyebrow with a smile. “You, or me?”  
 “I thought I would show Yuuri…”  
 Toshiya hummed, peering out of the kitchen window for a moment. Hiroko remembered seeing Mari parading her little brother around, doing a makeshift dance with him she had started learning from Minako earlier that night. Yuuri’s feet didn’t moving much, but his eyes were fixed on his sister and mimicking her arms. A perfect dancing duo. Yuuri saw them watching and Hiroko had smiled as he waved at them before the two collapsed into a laughing pile with the patrons clapping for their nightly performance. She was drawn out of her memory from Toshiya’s short nod and warm smile.  
   
 The morning saw her with her old pack on her back and Yuuri on her arm, with his hands reaching towards the bag. Mari hadn’t shown such a fixation with her pelt when she was little. Hiroko felt a pang of sadness, wondering if she would have done the same when she was a child if she could. But it would be something for them all to learn together. Perhaps Yuuri just liked the feel of it more.  
   
 Hiroko paused for a moment under the budding sakura and stared towards the clearing. It was a safe place, and given she didn’t know how Yuuri would react it might be safer. Mari found out by accident when she had been taking the skin off. This was the first time for either of her children to see her don her seal pelt.  
   
 Yuuri was fascinated by the clearing and the flowers growing.  
 “Yuuri, no!” Mari ran to pick her brother up as he started almost _running_ to the flowers.  
 “It’s fine, Mari,” Hiroko reassured. “Flowers grow back and they’d love to meet you both.”  
 “They?” Mari looked quizzically at her.  
 Hiroko sat Yuuri in front of one patch of flowers. “This is your kaa-chan’s mother.” The flowers almost whistled, reaching out for her children as a greeting. “And beside her is her sister.” She taught them both how to pay respects to a grave, before saying that their grandmother wouldn’t begrudge them a few flowers to take home at least.  
   
 In fact, she spent most of the morning teaching Mari how to make the same flower crowns as her mother. Yuuri’s job was to get equal amounts of flowers from both graves. Mari put her own crown on Yuuri and Hiroko put hers on her daughter. They were both so adorable, beaming up at her.  
   
 Then the breeze caught and Hiroko stared out at the ocean. The crash of the waves and the thought of the spray hitting her face called to her. She turned back to see Mari with her open pack and holding out the skin.  
 “You won’t be gone long, right?”  
 Hiroko’s heart melted and she smiled. “No, we’ll all be playing by the beach.” She took Mari’s hand and Yuuri’s to get them stand up.  
   
 Mari’s smile shone brighter than the sun. Most days it chased away the sea’s call, but every so often it became too strong, a roaring typhoon in her mind. She led her children to the water, letting Mari slowly introduce Yuuri to the playing waves. He cooed and Mari had to frequently stop him from chasing after the cresting waves.  
   
 Hiroko watched the two of them carefully, making sure that Mari had Yuuri firmly in hand before shrugging her pelt over her shoulders. It never really felt like she actually changed when she donned her pelt. When she opened her eyes again Yuuri was in front of her, hugging her face and babbling quickly.  
   
 “That’s mom,” Mari smiled. She hesitated for a moment before reaching out a hand. Hiroko knew plenty about the curiosity of children, something that had been more than common through all of her travels. She nudged Mari’s hand playfully and let her daughter feel her pelt. Yuuri seemed more baffled and delighted by her transformation, tugging lightly on one of her flippers.  
   
 The three of them slowly made their way to the ocean, where the roaring of the waves was able to cascade over Hiroko’s form and she rolled in the waves. The call to the far ocean was dim, lost in the joyous screaming of her children as they rolled with her. She paid particular attention to Yuuri. This was his first time out with her. Mari had enough experience to know when they would roll in the water together, but Yuuri didn’t yet. He adapted quickly enough and found that she would roll faster if his arms were tucked into her flippers.  
   
 It was a wonderful afternoon as she basked in the sun after a while. Mari was explaining what a seal was to Yuuri. There was something a little different to his eyes that Hiroko couldn’t quite place. It was something deeper than curiosity as he poked, prodded and climbed. She didn’t mind, and preferred that Yuuri’s first encounter with the supernatural was with something, someone friendly.  
   
 She wasn’t sure what she would have done without her mother and without a friendly neighbourhood kappa. She was fairly certain their family still lived in the area actually. Hiroko raised her head as a family approached. Mari drew a little closer to them, only relaxing when she saw the swishing of water within one of the children’s hair.  
   
 Hiroko perked up, raising her body higher to try and peer at the adult faces. The man laughed and knelt down, his partner following him.  
 “Would you be Hiroko-chan by any chance?”  
 Hiroko barked and nodded. A smile lit her heart and she glanced over at the young boy clutching his father’s pants, looking at her with wide eyes.  
 “Come say hi, Takeshi.” He touched his back.  
 Hiroko glanced at Yuuri, his eyes back to normal. She gave him a little nudge. The boy appeared to be his own age. It would be good for Mari and Yuuri to have other children to play with.  
   
 “I wasn’t sure if I’d ever see you again to be honest.”  
 Hiroko shrugged, and her skin loosened. She mentally drew her hands apart to have the pelt head slip off like a hood and let her smile.  
 The boy gasped and ran up to her, staring at the skin now covering Hiroko.  
 “Dad! That’s so cool! How’d she do that!”  
 “She’s a selkie, they’re a little like mermaids. I told you about her before.”  
 “But you said you played together when you were little! I thought she would look more like mom!”  
 Hiroko smiled. “I age differently inside my skin.”  
   
 She thought she saw stars in the other boy’s eyes. “Can I see inside it?”  
 Hiroko let a small laugh slip as the three children ran towards the ocean, wrapped in her pelt. She kept an eye on them as Mari led them all to chase the waves, making a game of who would get the most wet.  
 “I hope you don’t mind.” She looked up at Nishigori.  
 “Nah, it’ll do him some good to meet some normal-ish kids. You married Katsuki after all.”  
 Hiroko hummed acknowledgement. “I don’t know if either of them will be like me or take after him, though.”  
 “If you had to guess?”  
 Hiroko thought back. Her mother had said that the daughters born were always selkies, but she also never heard of any of her family that gave birth to a boy either. Perhaps it had something to do with them being captured instead of what she and Toshiya had.  
 “From our records, my guess would be Mari. I don’t really know what to expect, though.”  
   
 Just as she said that, screams came from the shore. Hiroko wasn’t sure the last time she moved so fast, certainly never this fast on land. Nishigori was right next to her as they came to shore.  
   
 Takeshi was the one to let out the shriek, almost covered by the waves. He was scooped up quickly by his father, taking stock of his child’s health. Hiroko scooped up Mari and had her moment of panic.  
   
 Where was Yuuri?  
   
 The only thing stopping her from screaming was Mari’s mute pointing under the waves. A baby seal yipped and climbed onto her boot.  
   
 Oh dear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing kids and moms is hard TAT


	3. Into the Water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiroko takes Yuuri to the sea for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the SECOND UPDATE FOR TODAY. Just in case you didn't read the previous chapter!
> 
> This chapter has the second piece by the lovely [Roserelease](http://rosereleasestheart.tumblr.com/) who also betaed the entire fic and was overall amazing as I screamed into the void writing this entire piece! I had a lot of fun, especially as you start to see the daycare form ;)

 It took some time for Hiroko to talk Yuuri out of his selkie form, and longer to convince him they had to go home for tonight at least. She had to promise him that they would come say hello to the ocean tomorrow. Her heart ached that her youngest heard the same call as her now. He was much younger than she was when she first transformed. Mari seemed to be taking most of it in stride, carrying his pelt home and how she had the coolest young brother ever.  
   
 What Hiroko dreaded the most was explaining everything to Toshiya. Although, it might work out for the best. If it had been Mari, Toshiya might have to take care of Yuuri on his own for a while. Hiroko paused at the bottom of the steps home, gathering her will as Mari hopped the steps two at a time with Yuuri running after her.  
   
 “Dad! Dad! Yuuri’s just like mom!”  
 “Oh?” Toshiya peered out of the kitchen.  
 “Yeah! He loves the water as much as her!”  
 Hiroko gave Toshiya a wan smile and nodded. “Mari, why don’t you give me Yuuri’s coat and you can both wash your hands before a snack?”  
 They both ran off gleefully.  
 “Tempura would be best I think. Nishigori got quite a fright too.” She hoped that Takeshi would still come by to play, though. It would be good for both of her children to get out a little more.  
 “Hiroko…”  
 She glanced back at Toshiya, her heart warming at his smile.  
 “We knew it was possible. It isn’t a sunrise without you.”  
 Oh, she was crying. It was unusual for Toshiya to be so elegant. She dabbed at her eyes and donned a smile.  
 “Things will certainly change.”  
 “They will, and we discussed them already.” He smiled. “You both do what you need to and I’ll be here for you, always.”  
   
 They all went out to the ocean again after dinner, Hiroko held out Yuuri’s pelt to him.  
 “You already know most of what to do, don’t you?” she murmured.  
 He slowly nodded, his gaze fixed on the water. “I’ll be like mom?” He turned, eyes bright with tears. “Mari will be alone.”  
 Hiroko smiled. “Yes, we’ll be back. I’ll be with you and make sure we both come home.”  
 Yuuri’s face lit up with a smile as he ran to give Mari one last hug, where she mumbled something that sounded a little like ‘brat’. He quickly ran back into the sea, his pelt flying behind him like a cape as it settled around his shoulders. Toshiya draped hers around her, giving her a last smile as she followed Yuuri into the sea.  
   
 Hiroko barely remembered her first swim. She only really came to her senses when she reached a far shore. But her mother wasn’t capable of following her at the time and only urged her to swim as far and fast as possible when she first transformed. So Hiroko was following Yuuri, letting him use his own instincts and curiosity.  
   
 Hiroko let him learn his new self, and made sure he was safe doing so. There were a few instances she chased off things that would love a selkie pup, as well as a few friends she had come across in her travels that she paused to gossip with for a little while. They offered her a few places to try that they had found, places that Yuuri might enjoy as he grew up. Hiroko promised to visit them once Yuuri was stronger. She didn’t want to risk his well being on some of the long journeys just yet. That night they rested on a rock, staring at the stars above, free of interfering lights.  
   
 The warmth was both familiar and strange to her. Even stranger was waking up within her skin. It had been so many years since she had spent more than a day at sea. She glanced at Yuuri, who was now eyeing the fish circling around the rocks. She playfully nudged him into the water, enjoying the sudden flurry of activity as Yuuri chased a school of fish. It was easier for her to snatch up breakfast for her and Yuuri in the chaos. It was far harder for her to bring him back onto the rock to eat.  
   
 It wasn't much longer after that Yuuri started looking back. She didn't think that his ties to home would be that strong, since they never were for her when she was growing up. She continued to follow him as he started back towards home, towards their loved ones.  
   
 It was strange how well Yuuri adapted to his other skin, shedding it quickly and running off the beach. Hiroko was left scrambling after him, the sun beating down on them from above and both pelts draped over her arm.  
 “Yuuri! Slow down!”  
 Yuuri barely slowed down, that bright light in his eyes shining even brighter as he raised his arms.  
 Hiroko let out a soft sigh and picked him up, letting him tug her to go faster as they climbed the stairs back home.  
 “They’re waiting! We’re making them wait!”  
   
 Hiroko couldn’t stop the smile from crossing her face. There was so much different between herself and Yuuri, and she had plenty to teach him about the sea.  
   
 She set him down, hands on his shoulders as he squirmed to get to the door.  
 “Yuuri, you need to keep your pelt somewhere safe, okay? If it gets stolen you can’t go back to the sea.” She paused, wondering how much she should tell him about their culture. But no, he was different. She couldn’t treat him as she was, it would be a learning curve for both of them.  
   
 “It’s best to only tell people you trust that you have it okay?”  
 “Okay! Can we _go?_ ”  
 Hiroko smiled, hands still firmly on his shoulders. “Don’t forget to take off your shoes.”  
   
 She let him go, and laughed as he tore yelling for Mari through the inn, his shoes still up in the air from how quickly he kicked them off.  
 “Hiroko?” Toshiya’s head poked out, looking one way then the other.  
 “We’re home.” Hiroko smiled.  
 “Ah, so I didn’t imagine Yuuri’s voice then.”  
 “He went to find Mari.”  
 There were squeals now coming from upstairs and Yuuri babbling with broken phrasing.  
 “We’ll be fine then,” Toshiya smiled back. “Help me with dinner?”  
 Hiroko nodded and just lifted up the pelts. “I’ll be there in a moment.”  
 She went upstairs, carefully tucking Yuuri’s pelt into the closet he shared with Mari before returning her own pelt to her closet, hanging it carefully. She paused for a moment to listen to her children, Mari begging Yuuri to slow down so she could understand him. A quick look showed Yuuri animatedly trying to tell his sister a story. Perhaps she should get him a sketchbook for now, at least until she was able to teach him more about the sea.  
   
 She washed up quickly at the kitchen sink before standing next to Toshiya, falling into their old routine with ease.  
 “You’re back sooner than I expected,” he murmured.  
 Hiroko smiled. “Yuuri wanted to come back.” She kept her eyes on her cutting board. “It will be different teaching him.”  
 Toshiya made an interested sound, so Hiroko continued.  
 “His call back to land is much stronger, and… he’s very young to have changed. The youngest I know.” She buried her worry for the moment. “He’ll be a bit more at risk, but I’ll talk to him tomorrow about what it means.” How much he would understand was another matter. But Yuuri was a smart child as well.  
   
 “Will you both be travelling from now on?”  
 Hiroko blinked and looked at Toshiya. He had a bit of a sheepish smile. “Mari was asking about a pet if you’re both planning to stay away for a while.”  
 “Oh.” Hiroko mused for a moment. She couldn’t say how strong Yuuri’s call to the ocean was yet, compared to the call home. Mari was quite attached to her younger brother too and she also hates leaving her family alone.  
 “We’ll ask Yuuri. If he's fine with it then we'll look at pets next week.”  
 Toshiya pecked her cheek and she smiled.  
 A slight sternness entered her voice. “No promises, Toshiya.”  
 “None,” he promised. A smile danced around his lips as they returned to cooking.  
   
 The children pounced on her when she asked about the dog. It took most of her willpower in order to keep her sternness, and emphasising that it didn’t mean that they were definitely getting a dog, and that most of the training would fall to Mari.  
 “I’ll be good! I take care of Yuuri right? It’ll be a little like that except the puppy can’t talk.”  
 Hiroko couldn’t quite argue given how many times Mari had stood in front of Yuuri and demanded he stop something. She was quite protective of him, and they let it happen to an extent. That didn’t mean the two didn’t get into trouble either, though. She let out a tiny sigh and a smile. What would she do with them?  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oomph Hiroko's POV is harddddd.


	4. One Upon a Mountain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri gets excited about new friends!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last of the double update days! Two chapters again today and next one will be up on Saturday!

 It was his first step on a new shore. Yuuri let his skin slip off, taking care as his mother watched him and the coast. He loved her, and he loved the sea. There was the everlasting tug of Mari and his guilt in leaving her and Dad home alone. But! A smile crossed his face as he carefully packed the damp skin into a bag. Mom had told him he was old enough now to travel further and see new places! The excitement thrummed in him. It wasn’t that there wasn’t much to see in Hasetsu, it was just that… it was Hasetsu. He glanced over his shoulder to see that Mom had packed away her own skin carefully.  
   
 “What are you forgetting?”  
 Yuuri blinked at his bag on the ground then up at her with the rucksack. Oh! He wrapped his bag around his wrist, remembering her warning about people stealing it now. He glanced at her to see her smile as she held out a hand he took with a bright smile. They would get to explore today!  
   
 Yuuri half listened as she pointed out ways to tell where it was safe to change, to come ashore and places where he should remain a seal. It felt like she wanted to talk about more as they walked but she chose silence instead. He was fine with that, it let him twist around as much as he wanted to see all the new flowers coming out. The birds sounded a little different, too. He stared up at the sky, wondering where they were all hiding.  
   
 “Yuuri, watch where you’re walking.”  
 He pouted a little as he focused on the rocky ground, just as he tripped. His grip on Mom kept him upright, and there was that sigh he knew too well. He didn’t do it on purpose! He was surprised that she was going away from the sounds of a city, though. He craned his head and slowed down a little, wondering what they were doing.  
 “Yuuri.”  
 “Where are we going?”  
 She knelt down to smile at him. “We’re visiting some old friends of mine. They sent a letter a while ago saying they have a boy around your age. I thought you might like to meet him.”  
 Yuuri perked up. A new friend? Takeshi was fine, but he couldn’t really say no to _more_ friends could he?  
   
 He started moving ahead, dragging Mom behind him. Wasn’t she the one in a hurry before? Why wasn’t she catching up? He wanted to head back home sooner rather than later, and Mom liked to wander around a lot. Yuuri would rather to be out _doing,_ whether it was helping in the onsen, or wandering the beaches with Mari. He wanted to explore! If her friends had someone his age maybe they could go out and play while the adults did adult things. He wasn’t really sure what adult things were, but they certainly liked to use that excuse a lot. So maybe he and his new friend could go do _kid things_.  
   
 “ _Yuuri!_ ”  
 Yuuri blinked as he was suddenly flying up, and held tightly. His bag swung uncomfortably from his wrist, bumping into Mom’s legs. He didn’t know what happened. What did he do to get into trouble to warrant this? He was holding her hand! He was staying close! His feet hit the ground again, but her grip on him just as tight as she knelt.  
 “Yuuri, I’m sorry. I need you to go hide okay? If you see anyone, scream.”  
   
 He was scared. He could hear the quiver in Mom’s voice. He couldn’t stop himself from trembling. But he could be brave for Mom. Mari and Dad weren’t here to help him.  
 “Hide and seek robbers?” He managed to swallow his own tremor. She rested her hand on his head and released him, nodding once. Yuuri nodded and headed back down the slope, with one glance back at Mom. There was a large dark stain on the earth that she stared at before following it to the side.  
   
 He had to be strong and hide so that Mom could be strong. He and Mari saw it once when someone got drunk. It wasn’t Dad that dealt with the unruly customer but Mom. She was strong, but not as much if she had to keep an eye on him. So he would stay hidden away from whatever was scaring her. After all, there was no way that Mom would lose.  
   
 He went a fair bit down the mountain until he found a good hiding spot in a bush. It tugged at him and his bag, but he held onto it tightly. Treat it like his soul, Mom had said. So he cherished it and took care of it. He shifted it so he was wrapped around it in the bush as he sat and waited for Mom to come back down. At least he was pretty sure that would be how she would find him. They hadn’t talked about that before. Yuuri frowned. There was something odd about that, but he wasn’t able to follow that thought when he heard a rustle near him, broken by panting. His curiosity was driving him insane, but he _had_ to stay hidden. At least until Mom came back.  
   
 Curiosity gave way to fear as the sound got closer and closer. There was something weird about the panting sound, too. He didn’t have time to think about it as the bush parted and a face appeared.  
   
 Yuuri reacted and screamed, holding his bag even tighter. The child - he just realised that the being was about as big as him - as Yuuri retreated quickly. Sure, he looked like a gigantic fancy snake, but still young. He heard hiccups from the boy and curiosity finally won out. He felt guilty for screaming right now, but Mom had told him too as well. He hoped that she would come down soon.  
   
 Yuuri peeked his head out of the bush and stared. A naga, it had to be. Mom had told him stories of other beings like them, but not. This was definitely ‘but not’ and he only knew that nagas looked like snakes but were bigger. Was he a naga?  
 “Uh. Sorry.” Yuuri was loathe to leave his bush. He didn’t mean to scare him and Mom always said apologising came first. “Are you okay?”  
   
 The naga shook his head, rubbing his face with his hands. Tears were flowing freely now. Yuuri hesitated to leave his bush, but surely the other boy wasn’t dangerous? What would Mom do? Yuuri thought for a moment before unwrapping himself from his bag, leaving it carefully hidden in the bush and coming out towards the other, patting him awkwardly on the shoulder.  
 “It’ll be okay. My Mom’s coming.”  
 The boy looked up at him, horrified. Yuuri felt a flash of fear for her for the first time, before slowly reaching out to give the boy a hug. He didn’t know if this was right, but given that the boy clung to him, his tail curling around him tightly, Yuuri decided it wasn’t a bad decision.  
   
 He introduced himself and talked about his home while the strange naga boy continued crying. He started to worry more and more as time went and he didn’t hear footsteps. Where was Mom? She heard him scream, right? What type of parents did the naga have so that he was allowed to wander alone— or was he alone for the same reason that Yuuri was? Because he was told to be. What would have scared naga parents?  
   
 A wave of relief washed over him when he heard the first few faint cries of his name. He looked up and listened carefully, falling silent for the first time. There was a faint rustle with her too.  
 “That’s my Mom, and probably yours too!” Yuuri beamed at the boy still buried in his shoulder. Oh. Darn. The boy was crying even harder now. What did he say wrong? Yuuri was at a loss now. He wasn’t sure if he should continue telling him stories or if it was better to wait for their parents.  
   
 He was still wrapped up tightly so it wasn’t like he could really move, actually it was interesting that he could even talk.  
 “So, uh. Nice mountain?” Yuuri cringed.  
 The boy sniffled, still resting his head on his shoulder but not holding him quite as tightly now.  
 “Promise?” he hiccupped.  
 “Promise what?” Yuuri tilted his head.  
 “That it’s Mom?” The boy pulled away, meeting his eyes properly for the first time. Yuuri stared into them, feeling like… something was supposed to happen but wasn’t?  
 “I mean? I think so? It could be your Dad right? But it sounds like a mom?”  
 Fat tears began to well and fall from his face again.  
   
 This time though, Yuuri could hear the voices more clearly.  
 “Yuuri!”  
 “Phichit!”  
 He hesitated for a moment before tapping his new attachment on the shoulder. “We should go see?”  
 The boy - Phichit? - nodded, and Yuuri could suddenly feel his legs.  
 “Wait.” Yuuri went back to the bush, digging to retrieve his bag and carefully wrapping it around his wrist. “Okay. It’s an adventure together!”  
   
 There was a smile for the first time on the boy’s face, and he stayed close and slightly behind Yuuri as he followed the voices, calling for Mom. Finally they crested a mini hill and the next thing he knew he was being smothered and bound again.  
   
 He flailed, trying to not fall down and squish Mom or Phichit.  
 “Phichit! Let him go,” the man scolded.  
 Phichit whimpered but still stayed close to Yuuri.  
 The male naga’s voice softened. “It’s okay, I know you were scared, you were brave.”  
 “M-m-mom?”  
 Yuuri could hear the tears in his voice and was overjoyed when it was his own mother that replied.  
 “She’ll be okay, but she needs some time to get better, same with your Dad.” Mom finally drew away, letting Yuuri breathe and stand on his own. _Adults_.  
   
 Mom stayed down near both of them, but her eyes were on Phichit.  
 “She’s fine, but she’s really hurt.”  
 Yuuri’s eyes dropped. It made sense now why Phichit asked about his Mom and he felt bad for saying what he did.  
 “Do you want to stay with us for now?”  
 Yuuri’s head snapped staring between them both.  
 “It’ll be safer for you,” the man added. “Their village has plenty of different people.”  
 “Our different?” Phichit pleaded.  
 Yuuri nodded. “My other friend is a kappa!”  
 Mom smiled and rested a hand on his head. “Yuuri here is a selkie too. Your Mom said you were looking forward to meeting him.”  
   
 Phichit nodded. “The village kids are scared of me…”  
 Yuuri frowned. “Well, I’m not.”  
 “You screamed at me,” Phichit argued.  
 “Mom told me to!”  
 “Boys.”  
 “Yes, Mom.”  
 “Yes ma’am.”  
 The man and Mom smiled. “It’s your choice, Phichit. I think you’ll like our hot springs.”  
   
 There was an awkward silence then Yuuri blinked as a familiar tail coiled around him and he glanced at Phichit then the man. The man was hiding a smile behind his hand, Mom wasn’t bothering to hide hers.  
   
 “Will…” Phichit bit his lip.  
 “We’ll be fine, we’ll come visit you by year end, I promise.”  
 Phichit looked between them with watery eyes, then curled back up around Yuuri. “Okay. Promise.”  
   
 Yuuri glanced between them as Mom introduced herself to Phichit and Phichit (finally) properly introduced himself. There may have been an apology too, but Yuuri still felt too guilty over almost promising that his parents were okay when he could see now that _something_ had happened. There was bandages wrapped all around Phichit’s Dad’s chest, and he could see a familiar red already seeping, no matter how he tried to hide it.  
   
 Maybe they were doing what Mom was trying to do with him earlier. As long as Phichit was somewhere safe, they could deal with everything. But Phichit was the most important to them.  
 “You can meet Mari!” Yuuri grinned. “And V-v…” He gave up. He swore that Mari picked a hard name just on purpose. “V-chan.”  
   
 Yuuri continued to ramble about their new puppy and how funny it was to watch Mari train him. Phichit stayed coiled around him and recoiled a little when they reached the water. Yuuri listened carefully to Mom as she gave instructions to them both. Specifically asking if Phichit was _sure_ he was fine with staying with Yuuri, and afterwards telling Yuuri that they would be rising more often for air so that Phichit to breathe and he had to remember that - blah blah. Of course Phichit couldn’t breathe the same. He wasn’t a seal. It would be like when Mom took him and Mari swimming and he could remember _that_ just fine.  
 “Uhm… I need to change,” Yuuri mumbled as he ferreted in his bag. Phichit was still clinging to him pretty hard and apologised. Yuuri thought there was all of ten seconds until he put his skin back on and Phichit was clinging to him again. It felt strange this time and he experimented with moving his tail. He would have to be careful to not smack into Phichit too hard as he moved into the water.  
   
 It was easy once they were in the water, and Phichit helped pull him up for air. They were heading home, and this time it was his turn to bring home a new friend.


	5. The Feeling You Get

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mari has a feeling about the sea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder that there was a double update today!!! There is another chapter before this one!

 Home without Yuuri was hard, but Mari could be good and wait. After all, Dad had to wait for Mom too, and he had been doing it for much longer. She was the big sister, she had to take care of Yuuri, but she didn’t resent it at all. She just… she wished sometimes that she could go with them. That she could see the big wide world. Mom and Dad tried to explain it to her, but she thought that Yuuri explained it best, or just in a way that she could understand it. He said it was like there was two types of katsudon in front of him but in different places. Sometimes one felt closer than the other, like the distance to Mom and Dad’s bedroom and the distance to her. Sometimes Mom and Dad just felt closer, even if they weren’t. She understood that, there were still times she wished she could just go to her parents for comfort, but she was the eldest. She was old enough now that she could deal with nightmares on her own.  
   
 Which was a bit of a lie, Mari mused as she bounced the ball across the room. Viktor bounded after it happily. She wasn’t entirely sure why she had picked that name, but it felt right. Almost important for some reason. She didn’t know what to do with those feelings, and it was a little scary to ask Dad about them, especially when Mom and Yuuri still weren’t home.  
   
 She would ask eventually. But sometimes the feelings went away when they were home so she put it off again. The flickers at the edges of her eyes never went away, though. Those were frustrating. She did ask Dad what it was like without his glasses, but it was nothing like this. Things weren’t fuzzy, just… not there when she looked.  
   
 Maybe after she got Viktor properly trained then she would find the supernatural library and see what she could find. After all, Mom said that the different species didn’t talk to each other much. Mom might be a selkie, but it was possible that Dad’s ancestor was something else… She glanced towards the window, an odd feeling settling in her stomach. She glanced at Viktor.  
 “Do you want to go to for a walk?”  
 Viktor barked and sat by the door. Good, she had trained him well for that at least. Now she just had to get him to stop peeing in the house. Why he preferred to learn one over the other, she had no clue.  
 “Dad! I’m taking Viktor for a walk!” she called as she put on her shoes and Viktor waited at the door patiently.  
 “Take care!”  
   
 The moment the door opened, Viktor took off. He was familiar with their route by now. It went down to the library, around the strange statue, and they always finished by the beach. Except this time it wasn’t Viktor that was anxious to get to the beach, but Mari. Viktor seemed to take his time sniffing everything this time, and Mari found herself resisting the urge to tug the leash to get the puppy to move faster, to get them to the beach soon. She didn’t know why, but it was important. _Something_ was going to happen and she was stuck trying to convince her new puppy of that.  
   
 When they finally hit the beach, the anxiety didn’t go away but bubbled further in her chest. It wasn’t a terrible feeling, but something like an ache. Something _wrong_ with the sea. Her heart soared when she saw a cresting figure. _Mom_. Then heartache when she saw _something_ wrapped around the smaller shape. Yuuri. What was wrong with Yuuri? What was around him? Mari’s grip tightened on the leash, her eyes fixed on the shapes as they drew closer to the water. What was hurting her brother? Why wasn’t Mom doing anything? She took a few deep breaths to try and calm down and think. She had seen Mom tackle strange water creatures before, surely if it was a danger she wouldn’t be alongside Yuuri. She would have gotten them a message that they needed help rather than trying to surprise them again.  
   
 Viktor whined at her grip and she let out her breath and forced herself to relax. Her anxiety still bubbled and she scooped Viktor up in her arms to hug him close. That helped her relax a little as the shapes drew closer and closer. Finally she was able to see and she drew a sharp breath. That was a _person_ clinging hard to Yuuri. Was he okay? Where did they save him from?  
   
 She almost dropped Viktor, it was a near thing only saved from the puppy yelping twice. Once from almost dropping and once from her holding on too tight. It felt like eons before Mom and Yuuri reached the shore and the strange.... Person? hesitated, eyes narrowed at her, before uncoiling from her brother.  
 “Welcome home,” she murmured. Viktor yipped twice and she let him down. Viktor ran to Yuuri, licking his face enthusiastically until the skin split and shed and he had access to Yuuri’s other face.  
   
 Yuuri giggled and the tight knot in her chest loosened, and she was able to focus on the naga. She was staring, it was completely rude, but the colours were just… _enchanting_.  
 “Mari, is your father here?”  
 Mari shook her head. “I was out walking Viktor.” She omitted her feeling, the dread that had been building in her stomach melted as her mother came and gave her a hug.  
 “This is Phichit, he’ll be staying with us for a while. Phichit, this is Mari.”  
 The distrustful eyes softened a little and Mari held out a hand.  
 “Sorry, I thought you were strangling my brother there.”  
 His eyes widened more and Mari laughed as he spluttered apologies and glanced between her and Yuuri.  
   
 Yuuri seemed almost a little older as he glanced at Phichit. Mari looked at Mom, wondering what happened, but fell silent at the look in her eyes. Fine, she would ask later then. She could stay up a tiny bit later than Yuuri anyways, as long as she was helping to tidy the dining area. That would be the perfect excuse.  
   
 They all chatted as they headed towards the clearing. She and Yuuri instructed Phichit as they took flowers up to the graves. She could hear Yuuri whispering to Phichit as they left, heading home. He was probably talking about how they would slip away sometimes to play there. Mari blinked at a flicker again and turned around quickly. She thought… that looked like a person but she couldn’t see it fast enough again. This was frustrating!  
 “Mari,” Mom called.  
 “Coming!” Mari gave a second glance to the graves before running to catch up, pausing only to call for Viktor to follow. He was staring at the graves as well before following her voice. Mari felt a chill run down her spine that faded as they left the grove.  
   
 Phichit stayed close to Mom and Yuuri, and Mari couldn’t really fault him for that. The supernaturals in Hasetsu were more subtle than a naga, so he was drawing a lot of stares and a few exclamations from children that didn’t know better. There was definitely a scolding from three sets of parents when a child just ran up to touch his tail without asking that had Phichit moving even closer to Mom.  
   
 Viktor was really curious too, and Mari hung further back than normal to avoid bothering Phichit in a new place. Yuuri was oddly protective of him, too. A wry smile crossed her face. There was definitely going to be a story at dinner time.  
   
 Yuuri and Phichit were shuffled off quickly to the hot springs while Mari took off her shoes. She was going to take Viktor back to her room before helping, but instead Mom shuffled her and Viktor towards the kitchen. Mari glanced up, confused. Viktor wasn’t allowed anywhere near the kitchen until he was trained! They had agreed on that!  
 “Mom!” she hissed.  
 Mom shook her head. “It’s important for right now, and you’re old enough to know.”  
 An odd pride swelled in her chest as she was pulled into the kitchen. She tried to get Viktor to sit while they hugged. There was something weird about the hug this time, though. She glanced from the corner of her eyes until they broke apart and turned to her.  
   
 Mom drove the conversation. Phichit would be staying with them for an indeterminate amount of time. He and his parents had been attacked by the villagers, afraid of what naga living nearby would do to them. Mari’s hands tightened on Viktor’s leash, imagining if that had been Mom or Yuuri. Mom continued to talk about their injuries, Phichit’s own fear as he fled, and her discussion as she treated his mother.  
   
 They wanted Phichit away while they mended things with the village to prevent his fear from developing, for him to learn that humans could be kind and accepting. Home was the best way, and they already knew Mom from before. Mari very badly wanted to ask how Mom had met naga, and what other supernaturals she had met, but it wasn’t the time. She knelt to pet Viktor, thinking hard.  
   
 The easiest way to get Phichit habituated to nice humans was to meet more, right? She was human… at least for now. She still felt a yearning each time Yuuri looked to the ocean, but it wasn’t the screaming demand he and Mom felt. It would be nice to have other company she could talk to, too! A small smile crossed her face. Yes, she would try to make friends with Phichit.  
   
 The conversation paused when the chatter of the two boys echoed through the dining room and a silence fell.  
   
 Mari smiled as she heard Yuuri proudly introduced his new friend to the patrons. She peeked out from around the corner and stared for a little long. Gone was the little serpentine fellow and in his place was a human, or… not a human? Mari rubbed her eyes as the images blurred a bit. She would have to ask Dad to take her to get her eyes checked.  
   
 She jumped a little when both boys came around to the kitchen. Viktor whined at her reaction. Mari squinted a little at Phichit. Yup, he looked like a boy.  
 “That’s cool,” she murmured. A faint blush crossed his face and he spoke haltingly in Japanese.  
 “It’s hard when…” he waved. “Lots of strange people.”  
   
 Mari gave him a lopsided smile. “I bet. If any of them give you trouble—”  
 “Let us know,” Mom interrupted her. “We want you to feel comfortable, too.”  
 Mari hid a pout, she wanted to issue the threats. Didn’t Mom always say it was harder to say no to kids? She definitely hadn’t taken advantage of that when a few patrons asked why Mom and Yuuri went away so frequently. She just stood there and stared them in the eye until they backed down.  
   
 “Mom?” Yuuri looked up. “Where is Phichit sleeping?”  
 Oh. Mari hadn’t thought of that yet. She turned to their parents.  
 Mom barely paused. “He’ll be staying with you, Yuuri. It’s about time Mari got her own room anyways.” She gave an apologetic smile to Mari. “I was going to ask you eventually.”  
   
 It was fine. There was no reason for there to be an empty pit in her stomach, none whatsoever. Yuuri was her little brother and she was just as curious about Phichit. There was plenty of time for the three of them, four if you included Viktor.  
   
 Except night came, and Mari was still cleaning up and setting up her new room. By the time she finished and peeked into the boys’ room they were fast asleep. It was fine, Viktor would be in her room. Except that he whined and she had a heart of glass and let him snuggle up with Yuuri and Phichit.  
   
 She was fine. She curled up in her futon on the bed, and for the first time she could really remember, cried herself to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first of many Mari chapters. She was a lot easier to write for some reason ehehehe...


	6. Once Separated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rift divides and is stitched together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I caught a cold and had to remind myself three times today that I needed to prepare the chapter to update... then fell asleep. Hopefully next Saturday it will be up faster. Next one will be up on Monday, probably around 5pm EST.

 There were days the ocean called to Yuuri louder than others. Days he would find himself at the edge of the road, staring at the ocean and willing himself to stay home. Mari made it easier, she was always with him on those walks. Viktor didn’t help, always prancing in the water. Except he did because they would all end up in the water, splashing each other.  
   
 It was different with Phichit. Instead of staring across the ocean, they built sand castles that Viktor would prance in happily to Mari’s laughter. She never joined in with them, he wasn’t sure why, or what had changed. She was still his big sister and a part of home. He tried hard to not look at the ocean, or distract Phichit when he caught him staring at the water, to his home.  
   
 He only had to live without Mari or Dad for short periods of time, and it was the hardest thing ever. He couldn’t imagine having to live without any of them and never knowing when he’d see them again. He pet Viktor absentmindedly and glanced back at the sea, at the foam cresting it.  
   
 “Yuuri!”  
 Arms pulled him back and he blinked. Oh, when did he get so far in? He looked up to see Mari and Phichit looking white.  
 “Is it always like that?” Phichit whispered. His Japanese improved lots in the few weeks he’d been here. Their night talks were stilted at first with a lot of drawings and hand gestures. Phichit mentioned that his parents were already teaching him a few languages, and taught Yuuri a few words in each as well. It turned out that nagas loved to learn or something like that, or at least Phichit did.  
 “No.” Was Mari’s voice always so shaky?  
 “Sorry.” Yuuri hugged them both. Was that him shaking or them? He shook his head and made sure to grab Viktor’s leash. The puppy tugging always kept him focused, even if Mari had him mostly trained now. Viktor whined and looked back as they reached the top of the stairs.  
   
 Phichit and Yuuri turned to see Mari staring towards the clearing. He opened his mouth to call her, then stopped. Something looked strange as she stared towards the graves. Viktor’s barking broke their concentration and Mari looked back to them and started jogging. Yuuri looked down at Viktor, who was staring at the same area. It was weird, Yuuri hadn’t heard that bark before.  
   
 Then again, he didn’t spend the most time with Viktor. He was Mari’s dog after all, and they just shared him when he was on land.  
 “Why’s he barking?” Yuuri looked up at her.  
 She shook her head and took the leash. “It’s nothing.”  
 She said ‘nothing’, but it didn’t sound like actual nothing. He _knew_ Mari’s nothings and that did not sound like one. But he didn’t want to scare Phichit either, so he followed them home, learning more about Phichit’s home as they went.  
   
 He was grateful that Mom took him further last time, that they could help Phichit and his parents. Phichit had told him how some scary people came to their home and attacked them. Yuuri couldn’t ever imagine anyone doing that in Hasetsu, and told Phichit so. While not everyone might know that Yuuri was a selkie, there were enough neighbourhood supernaturals around. They all blended in outside though. He talked about how Takeshi grew his hair weirdly to hide the bowl of water on top of it, making Phichit laugh.  
   
 Mom told him to try and make Phichit feel at home, and he hoped that it was working. Mari seemed to be letting him try on his own and just sat by them, watching them play. He paused. It was weird for her, but she had been weird since she got her own room. His heart sank a little. Maybe she thought she was too old for them all now. She was becoming a _big kid_. She had promised him when they were smaller that would never happen, that she would never leave him behind.  
   
 It’s why she was part of his home. Now there was also Phichit to remember. Phichit that was just as called to the water as Yuuri was, to the home he knew and resisted it. But it didn’t stop Yuuri’s call from getting louder and louder until it almost deafened him.  
   
 He blinked as he stared at the contents of his closet. When had he done that? The beach seemed so far away and he thought it was screaming for him to find something specific. Something that wasn’t here.  
 “Yuuri?”  
 Yuuri spun around to see Phichit, concern in his eyes. Phichit glanced at their room, with the futons out haphazardly and clothes everywhere.  
 “What are you looking for?”  
 What was he looking for? What was it he needed? He blinked at the mess and the closet.  
 “It’s gone.”  
 Phichit looked around too, he wasn’t sure for what, but it was important. There was a gaping hole in his chest.  
 “Auntie Hiroko! Auntie! Yuuri’s skin is gone!”  
   
 Footsteps thundered up the stairs. Skin? Yuuri sat down on the tatami hard. His selkie skin. The ocean roared louder in his head and he felt its essence leaking out of his eyes. He couldn’t go back. Why was it angry with him? It wasn’t his fault! He didn’t lose it! He didn’t!  
  ** _STOLEN?!_** Roared in his head and the tears came faster. He couldn’t breathe. He could barely feel the arms around him, the frantic calls around him.  
   
 Not loud enough, not loud enough. The ocean roared louder, drowning them all out in grief and anger.  
 There was more yelling, different yelling, different barking and more crying.  
 He stared for a moment as the ocean silenced with a package in his arms and Mari fleeing the room with Mom chasing after her.  
   
 Mari was crying. His arms wrapped around the bag and he tried to stand. It took Phichit holding him up to make it down the stairs. He had to ignore Phichit’s begs to go to bed, like Mom said. But Mari. Mari had his skin. Mari gave it back. Mari was crying. She had been different since she got a new room. Since Phichit.  
   
 When was the last time he had talked to Mari? It wasn’t her fault. It wasn’t her fault. Mom would be mad. _It wasn’t her fault_. The tears kept coming from his eyes, but it was no longer the ocean screaming through him. It was Mari, it was home. He couldn’t let Mom make her unhappy for something he did.  
   
 “You okay?” Phichit whispered as intense voices came from the garden. Yuuri nodded and tried to smile, giving Phichit a small push.  
 “Go to the baths first.”  
 Phichit hesitated a moment and let him go, waiting to see if he could stand and walk before letting him go to his family, to home.  
   
 He took care in placing his feet, but their voices rang clearly through his ears.  
 “What were you thinking?” Mom’s voice was tight, coiled like she was about to strike. Mari was on the ground crying. Mom must have caught her just before she was able to make it out and down the stairs.  
 “Do you understand what you could have done? How much you hurt him?”  
 “D-didn’t me-mean to,” Mari hiccupped. Yuuri couldn’t see her face. “J-j-just…”  
 “Just what? Mari?”  
 Yuuri barely hesitated before he walked in and ignored Mom. He sat down next to her, skin placed in front of both their feet before leaning against her side. Her crying increased and she brought him into a hug, apologising over and over again. He let her. Mom always said when patrons were in a state you had to wait until there was a break to say anything. So he waited. When the crying began to slow down and she met his eyes, he picked up his pelt and placed it carefully in her lap. He guessed it might make her cry again, and it did. But it mattered. She was family, and his only sister.  
 “Why can’t I go?” she sobbed, finally finding her voice and curling over the skin. “ _Why?_ ” Yuuri thought about it for a little bit. He didn’t really understand how everything worked, but only one thing really made sense to him.  
 “It’s because you’re home. You’re our home. You keep us here, keep us coming back.” He fumbled with the words. “The sea… the ocean… it’s always screaming. But you scream louder.” He made a face. “All the time.”  
 Mari let out a watery chuckle. “Practice.”  
   
 Mom sat down on Mari’s other side and let out her tired sigh. She started to tell Mari the same thing she had told Yuuri. He was surprised. Mari was older, he thought that she would have known this all already. She knew so much more than he did after all! She didn’t have to skip school, and she was _older_.  
   
 Mari hugged Yuuri tighter to her, tears falling more and more as Mom told her what that skin really was. She hugged it tightly to her, Yuuri could almost feel himself squished against her, as she loved to do now and then. Then she held it out to him, a watery smile on her face.  
 “Hide it better.”  
 He nodded sagely. “I will.” He took it back gravely before giving her a hug. “You should play with me and Phichit more.”  
 Mari wiped away her tears. “No.” Yuuri watched as she lifted her head, staring at the stars starting to peek out from the clouds.  
 “No, I think… I think I need to be out more.” She gave him a weak smile. She was pretending, badly too. Yuuri hefted an inward sigh.  
 “I need to meet more people, like you, Yuuri.” She ruffled his hair. “Can’t just have you and your friends around me all the time.”  
   
 His heart sank as he realised. He had never seen Mari with the older kids. Ever. She was always with him. He puffed up his chest. If she could pretend, he could do it better!  
 “You better bring them to meet us!”  
 “Maybe. Nerd.”  
 “Mari.” Mom warned. Mari sighed and let her head sink back below her knees before standing up.  
 “Okay mom.” She pushed at Yuuri. “Go. Don’t leave Phichit alone. Let me and mom talk for a bit.”  
 He looked over at Mom and back to Mari. “No more yelling?”  
 Mom frowned.  
 “It wasn’t yelling-yelling but it was yelling.” He put his hand over his heart. “No more?”  
 “No more,” Mom agreed. “Go on.”  
   
 Yuuri got up and hesitated a moment on the threshold, looking back and Mom and Mari staring at the ground, whispering between them. He never wanted to leave Mari alone, but she was asking for it now. He took a breath and turned back around. He could do this. He could be a big boy and give his sister space.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was probably one of the harder chapters to write, but also the easiest in a way. I realise not all children would necessarily act this way and my own experience probably shines through in a sense. 
> 
> Like I said, children are hard. Siblings just as much since we don't really see Mari and Yuuri interact too much in the show but I hope that I'm breathing life into them well enough.
> 
> Thank you all for the love you've given this so far.


	7. Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiroko tries to make Mari more comfortable with herself

 Hiroko let out a heavy sigh. She didn’t know why she had agreed to this. Well, she knew exactly why, but it the idea still felt strange. She was leading Mari to the hair salon. Over a month had passed, and she had promised after all.  
 “Mom.”  
 Hiroko blinked and realised she hadn’t let go of Mari’s hand. She looked up pleadingly.  
   
 Mari had argued well that her hair was something about her that she could change easily, that she wouldn’t be teased about. So Hiroko had agreed to let her dye her hair. They agreed that there would be no fantasy colours, not yet. The hairdresser had assured them Mari’s hair had too much pigment to be able to dye to begin with, the colour would have to be stripped first. Any colours would be discussed with Hiroko and Toshiya before going to the salon. It still felt too much like letting her go, but then… Mari had to let her and Yuuri go regularly.  
   
 It hurt her and she let Mari’s hand go and walk through the door. It hurt to know that it wasn’t a stranger to steal Yuuri’s skin, but her own family. That Mari would even think to take it, to deny that part of her brother.  
   
 At least she did until Yuuri asked why she had to tell Mari, after all Mari was older and smarter. Hiroko closed her eyes and walked down by the sakura trees. They were just beginning to bud now; hope swelling in each blossom. She had never told Mari or Toshiya what their pelts meant to them, what they really were. She had never felt the pain of her pelt ripped from her. She knew where it was always, and who it was trusted with. Yet somehow she knew just from looking at Yuuri’s lost and stricken face that night that it was gone, that his soul had been involuntarily taken from him.  
   
 It took everything not to yell at Mari, to not reach out and protect Yuuri from the damage his older sister had caused. Except Yuuri was the one that really solved the situation. Hiroko paused and blinked as she found herself automatically at the graves and sighed.  
 “Was I this difficult?” There was no answer from the whispering trees. Perhaps her additional trouble wasn’t from her children, but that there was two and her only experiences were with single children, never with siblings. It was completely uncharted territory and while she thought that it was a boon that brought that much more joy to her life… Now she wasn’t as sure. It would be a different story if they were both the same, they would have always been able to keep each other company.  
   
 It had never occurred to her how it might feel to her family to miss her so much. Even though the answer was always there in Toshiya’s arms. She asked after talking to Mari, just what happened while she and Yuuri were gone. What changed with them after, ever since their forays started.  
   
 She didn’t expect the quiet answer she received. Or that Mari would always walk the dog to the sea and wait for them, every day. Toshiya added a small side comment about how Mari thought she needed glasses, and perhaps that was to feel closer to her parents and Yuuri as well. Hiroko wasn’t certain. There was a different edginess to Mari now. She seemed almost… jumpier. She clicked her tongue. There was no worrying about it now. Toshiya had done a simple test and told her that her eyes were fine for now at least. She didn’t squint at the text at the varying distances, but Mari’s frustration at finding that out was odd.  
   
 But there was no one else for her to ask. She was muddling through this as best as she could. She looked up to the sun, sending a wish up to the wind for the health of her family and patience to understand them before clapping her hands, bowing her head, and walking back to Mari.  
   
 The quiet whisper of the trees followed her, but she thought nothing of it until Mari came out of the shop. Rather than meet her eyes, Mari’s eyes flicked to behind her for a moment before frowning and donning a smile and giving her a hug.  
 There were golden streaks through her hair now, and Hiroko had to admit it looked quite good on her.  
 “Think it would look as good on me?” Hiroko touched a streak.  
 “Mommm.” Mari sighed, before a smile quirked at her lips. “Probably. Thanks.”  
 Hiroko smiled. “It wasn’t much.”  
 “But it was,” Mari argued. She stared at her feet as they started to walk home. “Why did you tell Yuuri, and not me?”  
 Hiroko glanced at the sky. That was a failing on her part, a large one, and she wasn’t sure if she’d ever be able to put it behind her.  
 “I thought it wouldn’t matter if you didn’t know. Yuuri… Yuuri wouldn’t have understood in another way.”  
 Mari continued in silence, her feet dragging slightly. “I’m never going to be like you and Yuuri, am I?”  
 Hiroko thought her heart would fall to pieces.  
 She thought about her words carefully, a few years ago she could claim she didn’t know. But now, Mari was past the age where Hiroko had first ventured into the sea.  
 “No, you take more after your father.”  
   
 Mari’s shoulders slumped as they continued walking.  
 “But, that’s important too.” Hiroko carefully didn’t make eye contact with her. “Yuuri and I will see somethings one way, but you both see it differently, more clearly.”  
 “I don’t know…”  
 Hiroko looked across, how long would it be before she was looking up at her daughter?  
 “Is this about asking about glasses? It isn’t a bad thing.”  
 Mari shook her head and bit her lip. Now that was odd. Mari was the fearless one, the one Hiroko always had to guide away from dangerous situations. The one that tried the new to see if it was safe, or good.  
   
 “I thought… I hoped it was my eyes.” Mari rubbed at them. “It’s like seeing bits of cloud just behind me but when I turn there’s nothing. Or someone’s behind me, but then I look and they aren’t there.”  
 Hiroko frowned, that was strange indeed. A darker thought crossed her mind, but she pushed it away for now.  
 “Well, I have some good news for you.”  
 Mari stared at her, Hiroko only continued to smile and walk.  
 “Mom.”  
 “You’ll see~” She was fairly certain that Mari purposefully hit her foot on the first stair to excuse her swearing. She would let her get away with it, for now. She’d be damned if she left her daughter feeling alone again.  
   
 It wasn’t a particularly large surprise that Hiroko had arranged, just something small that she had once wished she could do. Something she wouldn’t have trusted if not for the family she had. Yuuri and Phichit had adamantly insisted on helping during the dinner service, even if they had to deal with the noisy _girls_.  
   
 There was a brief moment she worried she had made a mistake when she showed Mari the room filled with futons, and the names of the girls that were coming over. At least until the moment she couldn’t breathe anymore, her eldest holding her as tight as possible. She made sure to lay out some ground rules when they all arrived, but told them to relax and enjoy their night together. She made sure to pull Mari to the side to let her know that if she wanted to, if she felt safe enough, that she didn’t have to protect her. It was unsaid that Yuuri’s supernatural identity would be protected, at least until he had a better understanding of all the risks. Her own, however was fair game if Mari wanted.  
   
 She was fairly certain that some of the girls had their own supernatural background, and this type of get together was just the type of thing she had wished for as a child. But for her, her parties and get togethers were more tense and usually involved the sea. A smile came to her face. She could make her children better lives than the one she had. No, she would make it better than the one she had.  
   
 They ranged in age as well, so Hiroko hoped that some of the friends that Mari made would be willing to have her much younger brother tag along after them. Mari was thoughtful towards him, but Hiroko had missed just how much of Mari’s life had been devoted to him. It wasn’t fair to her, and she had discussed with Toshiya to make sure that Mari would spend part of the day outside - not just walking Viktor.  
   
 It would be hard on all of them for a bit, and Hiroko tried to explain it to Yuuri. She had no idea if he understood most of it, or how much of the Japanese that Phichit had picked up. The boy was a blessing and seemed to understand far more than he spoke. She only worried what would happen the next time Yuuri heard the sea’s call and they had to leave. Phichit seemed to have attached himself to Yuuri, and Hiroko could see why. When he wasn’t thinking of his parents or talking about home there was a brightness to him and a deep curiosity of everything.  
   
 “Katsuki-san?” A head poked around the corner. One of the girls, Hiroko searched her head but was coming up blank.  
 “Uhm, Mari-chan said that I should ask for an introduction to Yuuri-kun? Takeshi-kun mentioned him to me before.”  
 Hiroko perked up a little. Little Takeshi knew her? “I see. What has he told you about Yuuri?”  
 “Uhm, not much really.” The girl pinkened. “He was a little… awkward and then said it was best to ask Yuuri-kun about it?”  
 Hiroko felt her heart sink a bit.  
 “I mean, I don’t think it was too weird of a question to ask?”  
 Hiroko tilted her head and the girl’s head dropped slightly.  
 “I… wanted to know how the ocean felt inside. I mean… I…” she bit her lip. Oh. Hiroko knelt down to her level. She had seen young Takeshi’s water bowl, and was trying to protect him.  
 “It’s true that Yuuri would know that, but he might not have the words for it.” Hiroko smiled, trying to will the girl’s eyes up to meet hers.  
   
 While the residents of Hasetsu were somewhat accepting of the supernatural, there were very few that openly sought them out, that tried to build bonds between them. She had always considered herself an oddity for her friends, and she certainly wasn’t going to prevent it for her children.  
   
 “It might be easier for me to answer some of your more specific questions than Yuuri, but well…” she bit back a sigh and shrugged instead. “He’s quite special in his own way, too.”  
 The child glanced up at her through her bangs, nibbling at her lip.  
 “I can still introduce you two, it’s good for him to meet more people.” It also wouldn’t hurt for Mari and Yuuri to have more friends in common, people that knew them both and loved them for who they were and how different they were.  
   
 She got a bright smile in response. “Okay! Uhm, we can wait ‘til after the sleepover?”  
 “Of course. Uhm, please remind me…”  
 “Ah! Yuuko!” She grinned, bouncing on her feet. “You can introduce me to him as Yu-chan then!” With barely another breath she was bounding up the stairs, leaving Hiroko downstairs with a wry smile in the kitchen.  
   
 Well at least it sounded like everything was off to a good start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got to Yuuko! And a few more hints about Mari <.<
> 
> Unfortunately there won't be much more (if anything if I recall) with Takeshi and Yuuko. I just kinda... ran out of time for story snippets XP


	8. New Places

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where Phichit and Yuuri go on a trip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really have any good excuse/reason for the delay and I'm really sorry. I ended up spending more time than I planned/wanted on apartment paperwork and am setting up for the move still. I'm aiming for one a day til the fic is done at this point. Hopefully I can at least keep that schedule ><

 Yuuri was practically _vibrating_ with excitement! Mom had told them that Phichit could come for the next trip, if they wanted! They would be staying close to home, only going to a nearby country, but the very _idea_ of Phichit being able to come with them was amazing! It was even more amazing when Phichit said that he thought that he could swim _on his own_. Mom said she’d have to see first, but it didn’t do anything to stop the vibrations building in his bones.  
   
 This was just turning out to be an amazing week! Mari had her own sleepover, and he got to chat with one of her friends who knew Takeshi-kun too! He had barely remembered Mom’s advice in time and just stopped himself from showing her his selkie skin in his excitement. Instead, he told the story that Mari told him of her and Takeshi screaming when he first transformed. He didn’t remember it that well to be perfectly honest.  
   
 It was harder to explain to her and Phichit how the feeling welled up, like tides within him and how at high tide he _had_ to be in the water. Yuuko - no she said to call her Yuu-chan. Yuu-chan had asked a lot of hard questions he didn’t have answers for. Like how selkies were able to survive outside the water without their skin then. Mom didn’t talk about Grandma much, but he knew that she had been forced out of the water for a long time and he didn’t know how that felt. He didn’t think he wanted to either, given what happened the last time. It did, however, mean he got lots of cuddles from Mari and Mom for the next few days. That part was awesome. Yuuri glanced out the window, the blue shone out to him, quelling some of the vibration in his bones.  
   
 He worried about Phichit, who still didn’t seem to really like the inn. He knew that he was called more to the ocean right now than Mom. He was kind of looking forward to when he was big enough it wouldn’t happen. She didn’t have an answer either for how long it would continue. She had dashed one of his dreams, although it was really Mari…  
   
 He pet Viktor absentmindedly and let himself relish in the soft curls. He had dreamed of all of them travelling, of showing Mari the sea that he saw. All the kinds of fish! All the colours! Like how water could be _green!_ But Mari would never see it. Not the way he did anyways. It was hard trying to explain. How could something ever be explained in more than words? Thoughts? Feelings? Yuuri frowned. Although, it seemed she had her own things she was having trouble explaining. Even though she said it was older kid stuff and he shouldn’t have to worry about it.  
   
 “Yuuri! Have you packed? Do you have your bag?” If Phichit was truly human, Yuuri would have described the movement as bounding, as Viktor loved to do in the water. But he wasn’t quite sure how to word the movement in Phichit’s naga form. The serpentine movements weren’t really definable, especially given that Phichit moved in some ways that Yuuri had never even seen a snake move.  
   
 Yuuri frowned at the question. He thought he had everything, he definitely had everything on the list Mom had given him. But he still felt like something was missing.  
 “Maybe…”  
 “Well! Auntie will bring lots too! I’m sorry I can’t help carry things.”  
 Yuuri smiled. “It’s better than them all getting wet!” They both laughed and splashed in the water, one set of eyes always on the shore, where Yuuri’s bag sat.  
   
 “Geez, just how old are you?” Mari complained, setting another bag down by his. Yuuri lit up. Mari always saw them off, but given what happened last time he wasn’t certain if she would come.  
 “Five and a half next week!”  
 “Oh no,” Mari’s voice was flat in her joking voice. It was such a weird voice, but he loved it! “What will I do? You’re almost a big kid!”  
 Yuuri couldn’t stop his chest from puffing a bit. “I’ll look and find a way for you to see the ocean!”  
 Mari’s jaw slackened. Yuuri wondered if he said too much as she hunched over. He didn’t make her cry again did he? He didn’t mean to! Then the laughter reached them over the water.  
 “You! Think you’ll find a way?”  
 “I will!”  
 “Not if I beat you to it!”  
 That wasn’t fair! It wasn’t fair that he was younger!  
 “Until then…” Mari sat on the wall, keeping her distance as her legs caged the two bags. “You have to keep bringing me cool stories.”  
   
 Yuuri had an answer, he swore he did, but that was the exact moment that Phichit sent a huge wave at him and such a travesty could only be answered in kind. It continued until Mom arrived, at which point Yuuri scrambled back to the bags. There was a small tussle between him and Mari that resulted in him getting covered in sand from head to toe before claiming his bag back.  
   
 There was a moment of panic as it felt lighter than normal until he looked up. There was a strange expression on Mari’s face as darkness swept over him and the skin settled on his shoulders.  
 “Travel safely.” Mari’s words were like the passing wind as she sprinted back away. He thought she might be crying, but he couldn’t follow, it was too late to follow as his second skin enveloped him.  
   
 It felt itchier than normal, and he resigned to feeling like that for most of the swim as the ocean called louder. Mari probably did it on purpose too! Darn her! He tried rolling in the sand down to the beach in order to get rid of the feeling, but it persisted.  
   
 Soon enough he was swept up by the water, and fighting to keep his mother’s swimming pace. The thrill and rush calmed his mind with the swirl of each wave and the depth of the ocean they traversed. He had no idea how Mom knew where they were going all the time, he could only follow and learn. Phichit seemed to have tons of fun as he kept close, but chased after fish, sometimes swallowing them whole.  
   
 His scales seemed almost iridescent, but also blended into the water. Sometimes Yuuri thought that he simply vanished until there was a small ball of blue light back beside him. Yuuri tried to chase him sometimes, but learned quickly that he tired faster than Phichit. It made sense, he thought while he sulked and followed Mom. He was carrying more than Phichit was. Phichit also seemed far more intrigued by the water now than he did the first time, coiled around Yuuri.  
   
 The first thing he saw when he reached the shore was _mountains_. His skin draped over him as he stared at the vast mountain range, his jaw wide open.  
 “Yuuuri, this isn’t _that_ impressive!”  
 Yuuri gave Phichit his best unimpressed stare.  
 “Much better!”  
 “Geez. It’s pretty, though.” Yuuri let out a sigh.  
 “It is,” Phichit admitted. He glanced over at Mom, who was only just slipping off her skin. Yuuri had to wonder if that was what he looked like too when his skin split.  
   
 They both stared at her and at the neighbouring foliage. Yuuri could almost hear the call of the wild, the call to adventure and the unknown. He owed Mari more stories after all. Mom took a look at both of them and sighed as she held out Phichit’s bag.  
 “You’re both to be back here before the sun sets, and always in view of the water,” she warned.  
 That was permission! Yuuri darted off into the forest, he could hear Phichit behind him, slithering across the sand. Being the curious boys they were, there was far more time spent staring at all the different insects and calling each other over for every animal they saw.  
   
 It was all fine until Yuuri heard Phichit’s shriek. “ _Auntie!_ ”  
 Yuuri darted over, worried about Phichit. What would have possibly made him yell for Mom like that? Phichit was snapping twigs, unlike before when they were trying to be as quiet as possible. Yuuri glanced towards the sounds. The water. Phichit was heading back. He changed direction as quickly as he could, following the sounds of Phichit and the close sound of Mom. Was she always that close? He thought she was just watching them from the beach, but it sounded like she was right against the treeline instead to be snapping branches like that again.  
   
 Yuuri thought he heard a snap behind him but he couldn’t risk the glance, couldn’t risk the look. If there was something, the water was home. He crashed out of the trees into a small clearing. Phichit was back in his human form. Yuuri paused, wondering what that could possibly mean until fire whizzed past his head, crackling and sending something shrieking back into the brush. Phichit moved and Yuuri saw a multi-tailed fox barely standing, hissing at him. Him? Or whatever had followed him? It continued to hiss until it toppled sideways, taking a step.  
   
 Foxes. Mom had told them stories about the shapeshifters. He couldn’t tell exactly how many tails this one had, it was thrashing around so much.  
 “Hush.” Mom quickly gathered the fox in her arms. Yuuri could see the scratches welling up. She met his eyes for a moment. “Back to the beach.”  
 He and Phichit needed no other prompting and darted just as quickly back, with Mom keeping pace. He didn’t hear the yipping of the fox anymore. That could be either a good thing that they had calmed down, or bad. Yuuri skidded to a halt as his feet touched sand. His speed took him a little farther, Phichit less so. Mom kept going though, right to the edge of the water.  
   
 Yuuri jogged to catch up to her as her eyes scanned the treeline.  
 “Phichit, watch for trouble. Yuuri, get the bags.”  
 Phichit’s form slowly faded until the naga emerged, almost invisible against the sand and slithered closer to the treeline. Yuuri darted as fast as he could to the bags. He had to half drag one across the sand. Three was a bit much for him. He was out of breath by the time he came back.  
 “Put my skin on the sand, Yuuri.” Yuuri barely hesitated and she carefully placed the fox on it. Their breathing was more shallow now and Yuuri could see the blood welling from a deep cut in the side.  
   
 “Mom?” he whispered. Mom looked up at him and a weight fell off of him when she showed him her soft smile. Everything would be okay.  
 “I need you to help me with this, okay Yuuri?”  
 He nodded.  
 “Okay, I need you to be a big kid, and trust you can do this. Can you catch us a fish? One of the bigger ones? And gather some smaller seaweed.”  
 “What’s it for?” He had to know first.  
 “Needle and thread.” Mom folded her skin over the fox and pressed down, ignoring it’s pained yelps.  
   
 Yuuri had no idea what Mom needed needle and thread for, but she needed his help. He glanced over his shoulder, seeing Phichit wink at him before his own skin settled over his shoulders and he let the waves carry him.  
   
 It wasn’t the first time he had gone fishing but it was the first time on his own. It was almost like Mom was with him though, talking to him over his shoulder. Going for a lone fish was no good, there was no way they could catch just one. They needed to go for a swarm. The fish would be the harder part, so he simply noted the patches of seaweed near him, both thin and thick.  
   
 The first flickers of the fish were further out, and deeper down. Yuuri felt a sense of foreboding, but he had to follow the fish. He had to help.


	9. A Thought

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiroko talks with an old friend and muses over the past and future.

Months later, Hiroko wondered what possibly had gone through her head, how she could have possibly sent Yuuri out alone. Yet, as the three boys played tag out in the garden, she found that it seemed to have worked out okay.  
   
 It took Seung-gil over a month to recover, and even longer before he was able to transform into other shapes. Yuuri seemed delighted by it, and Mari fascinated. Hiroko let out a happy sigh.  
 “You have quite a few now, Hiroko.” Shiro laughed, following her gaze.  
 “What can I say?” she refilled his tea and waited as he returned the favour. “I could hardly leave them alone could I?”  
 “You know people are talking.”  
 Hiroko resisted rolling her eyes. People always talked, they were just talking more because the children didn’t see much reason to hide who they were at home. It just so happened that home happened to be a semi-public area. It had gotten to the point she made sure there was a set of baths cordoned off for family use only. While the boys might enjoy the attention now, it might not always be the case. Until then, she knew Mari enjoyed it to get away from the noise, and she and Toshiya enjoyed a more private space at night sometimes.  
   
 “As always.”  
 Shiro huffed, rapping a hand on the table. “That’s not what I meant!”  
 Hiroko raised an eyebrow and raised her cup to her mouth with a slight turn.  
 “They’re different. Growing up different, I mean.”  
 Hiroko let her tea wash over her tongue while Shiro fumbled for words.  
 “It’s different. Growing up, you and I… I never knew until…”  
 “Until I disappeared for years and came back the same?”  
 Shiro smiled sheepishly. “Actually until I talked to your aunt. I had quite the thing for you back then you know.”  
 Hiroko shrugged, echoed by him.  
 “But having different types here, growing up with them and exploring… we didn’t have that, but they do. You know, they’re forming groups now.”  
 Hiroko frowned, she had hoped Hasetsu would avoid that issue. Certainly part of the reason supernaturals were so welcome here was that most of them kept to themselves. As a result they didn’t really segregate. Except the children, especially since these children were too young to be able to blend easily. Well, over half of them. She smiled a little as Mari added a little order to the game of tag. Or was it that variation that she and Yuuri made up?  
   
 Mari brought the other children around, so by the end of the day there was normally a group of children filling the springs.  
 “I’m not saying it’s always good but… I think you have a good bunch here.”  
 Hiroko frowned at the twinkle in Shiro’s eye. She was used to that look, usually whenever they were about to get into trouble. It was always fun trouble, but she wasn’t sure she’d be looking forward to whatever chaos he was thinking this time.  
 “You could start a school.”  
 Hiroko shook her head. Her help was needed too much at the ryokan. She wouldn’t let Toshiya run himself into the ground with it. Certainly their patrons were changing more now, some of their regulars had left but more came. Many, it seemed, to watch the children. She kept an eye on them, but she had her own suspicions about their origins.  
   
 “Hmph. Fine, it would take too long anyways. What about a daycare?”  
 Hiroko found herself thinking about it for a little too long then realised the trap. She shot Shiro a glare, to his amusement.  
 “I’ve known you for too long.”  
 Shiro laughed. “Yes! But you’re thinking about it now!”  
   
 Hiroko smiled and brought a hand to her cheek. She was thinking about it now. She was halfway there already, and Seung-gil and Phichit were proof of how sometimes supernaturals needed a safe place for their children…  
   
 “Now, I think I heard Yuuri’s story about Phichit…” Shiro glanced at the boys again.  
 Hiroko didn’t mind his prying, especially if he was intending to help his insane idea bear fruit. “Phichit found Seung-gil in the forest. He’s older than me, but still a child given their standards.” It would definitely make things interesting. He already knew enough history and stories that he had been telling the other children. She just didn’t know if his stoic personality was due to his age, or because of his life. He seemed to listen to her enough though and played with the boys well.  
   
 “I’m afraid I just don’t know enough, though.” Hiroko sighed. She worried about him too, not as much since he seemed to be drawn to Mari when Phichit and Yuuri were being more rambunctious. Perhaps it was that she was older and calmer… something niggled at her, but she pushed it away for later.  
 “I probably made a mistake too,” she admitted, placing her cup back on the table. It was Shiro’s turn to take a long sip of his tea.  
   
 Hiroko recounted her fear at hearing one of the boys scream, and the instincts that drove her to them, then back to the water. She could barely think over the roar within her own mind when she sent Phichit to scout, to buy time. He had gotten so much better at hiding and after Seung-gil had driven off one demon she worried more would come from the scent of blood. Yuuri… it was true that the fish bone and seaweed thread she had fashioned for temporary stitches were a boon… but she had also thought that it would keep her close to her family. It would let Yuuri run away if something truly terrifying came out at land and he would be able to flee through the ocean.  
   
 Regret began to seep into her through the trip back home, she admitted. It was still there, weighing down her heart, but hearing the three boys laugh and hearing Yuuri puff up with pride that he could hunt on his own now helped. She glanced back out at the boys now, who seemed to be listening to Seung-gil teach them about dragonflies as they whizzed about the garden.  
   
 “If you hadn’t done anything…” Shiro murmured.  
 Hiroko gave him a wry smile. “It turned out that Seung-gil had been healing for the last three months before that. He fled under illusion while his parents were bound and exorcised.”  
 Shiro flinched. Hiroko still didn’t know what to make of how Seung-gil had told her there was nowhere else for him to go. Still, she couldn’t get his face out of her head when she offered her home for him to stay. A smile quirked at her lips when she remembered bringing him to the shore.  
   
 Seung-gil had been too weak to transform then, much like Phichit. His three tails had draped over her arms - he assured her that his parents had nine - was part of why they had been hunted. Sometimes she wondered at the look in his eyes. It was similar to Phichit’s, the desire to return. He was probably strong enough that he could too now that he was healed.  
   
 It worried her some thinking about it, what would happen if they woke one day and he was just… gone.  
 “How did Toshiya-kun and Mari-chan take it?” Shiro grinned.  
 Hiroko sighed. “Better and worse than I could have expected. Mari… Mari’s been having some trouble lately.”  
 Shiro made an understanding noise. “She’s at that age is she? I remember having daughters at that age.”  
 Hiroko smiled. “I think that’s part of it, but… something’s worrying her too.” Hiroko couldn’t quite shake that conversation after her hair appointment. They still went every few months to touch it up. Hiroko had finally given in and consented to letting her dye a few of the strands at least. She couldn’t exactly argue with her reasoning, not when it touched her so much.  
   
 “I never thought…” Hiroko didn’t know where her thoughts were going with that.  
 Shiro nodded. “My grandparents always said that it passed through the female line for your family, as far as they could remember and had been told. I would have thought it would be Mari as well.”  
 “It gave us all quite a scare.” Hiroko laughed. “Poor Takeshi-kun and Mari screamed. He still comes around though.”  
 “Wasn’t enough to scare him was it?”  
 “I think it helped that Mari was scared too.”  
 “Hmph, that girl has nerves of steel now.”  
 Hiroko kept her silence. She knew better, could still occasionally hear the crying hiccups through the door late at night. Toshiya told her that she was better while they were gone, but their leaving and returning was still hard. It was difficult to help her, especially when she was needed to help at the ryokan as well.  
   
 Hiroko pondered about hiring another hand, as much as the family run ryokan was a selling point, she wasn’t willing to torment her family just to maintain their reputation. Then if they did hire new hands, it would open up some other possibilities, such as the one Shiro suggested.  
 “You’d need some more people of course,” Shiro nodded. “Toshiya can’t run this place by himself, and I’ve seen Mari here more than outside with her friends. She should be able to have time to herself, time to grow.”  
 Hiroko found herself nodding absentmindedly, it was what she had just been thinking.  
   
 A realisation hit her and she shot Shiro a sharp look. “You have someone in mind.”  
 Shiro laughed. “Perhaps. I have a few grandchildren that may have been begging for the chance to earn some money, and who need to learn there’s more to the world than what they see.”  
 Hiroko’s eyes narrowed slightly.  
 “They’ll work hard, I promise! They’d probably fall at your feet if you offered them work and do what you want them to. I mean…” He scratched his chin. “They’re my daughter’s kids and… well I’m almost certain she knows. I certainly tried to raise her to be accepting.”  
 Hiroko clicked her tongue.  
 “Just think about it?”  
 Hiroko nodded, only a little reluctantly. Shiro planted the idea in her head, which was probably all he really planned to do, along with a push that there would be workers willing to work at the ryokan if that was a route. He was quite clever in slowly chipping away at her reasons.  
   
 She looked over at the boys again, Seung-gil holding fire within his hands. There were flickers of flame around Phichit, like he was trying to copy it but not quite understanding. But Mari… Hiroko paused and stared at Mari again. Mari seemed almost enraptured, a focus to her eyes that she had never seen before. Almost like Mari’s eyes had been out of focus for her entire life, there was just… something more to them. A clarity Hiroko hadn’t seen before.  
   
 “Literally playing with fire, huh?” Shiro chuckled. He meant it in jest, Hiroko knew. But she also knew that this might end badly and started moving just as Seung-gil lobbed the ball up in the group and Yuuri reached out his hands to grab it. The yelp and dropping of the fireball had everyone moving in a tizzy.  
   
 It took a few moments for Yuuri to get his hands under cold water, leaving them there with Mari to watch over him. Hiroko wasn’t sure if Mari wanted to laugh or apologize from the look on her face. The strangeness to her eyes wasn’t quite gone.  
   
 It was quite easy to get the story from them all, especially since she wasn’t actually mad. She definitely shot a look to Shiro, who was inside with a smile. He would be laughing at the dinner table tonight, she knew.  
   
 It turned out that they decided to teach each other games they had learned growing up, and Seung-gil had been teaching them a game that his parents had taught him. It was essentially a game of kickball as she could gather, but Seung-gil wasn’t certain if control was possible outside of other foxes. So they had decided to test it. That was the reason behind Phichit’s ghostly fire, and the very small ball he had tossed Yuuri. She was quite grateful for his foresight. It was hard for her to decide how to treat Seung-gil, whether he was more a child or closer to her own age with his sense.  
   
 She took some time with them, and there was some gathering of materials for all the children and testing before they were tossing the fireball around each other. She let out a small sigh and smile at the joy on all their faces, even the tiniest quirk of the lips from Seung-gil.  
 “So much trouble, but so much love.” Shiro smiled as he came and sat with her by the garden.  
 “Yes.” Hiroko watched as Yuuri dropped the ball and Mari switched in to bat the ball back and forth. She would have to buy more oven-mitts but for now it was worth it to see them all enjoying themselves.


	10. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mari finds out why her vision has been strange.

 Mari wasn’t quite sure what to make of Seung-gil, but it also seemed like he wasn’t quite sure what to make of her as his eyes followed her. Granted, they didn’t exactly get off to the right start when Viktor and Seung-gil had an immediate fight and she definitely took Viktor’s side. She couldn’t help but side-eye the two of them when they were in the same room at first. Seung-gil looked too much like he wanted to eat Viktor and like hell she’d let him eat her dog.  
   
 It was a stupid thing, and even stupider was how long it took both of them to settle the differences. Seung-gil hadn’t _met_ a dog before. Which she found absolutely ridiculous, but then Mom had told her that Phichit needed to be instructed on how to bathe in the onsen and she thought that then too. There was just so much different with the world, and she was limited to the one tiny town.  
   
 She paused outside Yuuri’s room. It was getting more and more packed with the added bodies. It still hurt sometimes, but she just had to look into the mirror and she felt a little better. The hints of blue and green through her hair reminded her. While Mom and Yuuri might have a deeper connection to the ocean, she was still connected to it too. It was a part of her, as much as Mom, as much as her Grandmother.  
   
 Mom had reasoned her constant draw to the graves as ritual, or routine. But, Mom didn’t know how often Mari found her gaze drawn to the trees, or to the cemeteries during class. She didn’t know how Mari still saw those flickers at the edge of her vision. They were easier to ignore for a while, at least until she met Seung-gil.  
   
 For some reason the fox had attached himself to her, rather than to Yuuri and she hadn’t figured it out. Mom seemed to have some trouble dealing with him as well, but he listened to Mari frequently. It baffled her. How could her opinion possibly be more important than Mom’s? She had been the one to heal him, to bring him back. Was it just because she taught him how he could say hello to Viktor?  
   
 She sighed and glowered back at her homework. She wanted to go out. Not necessarily to hang out with friends… but she just… she just wanted a walk. She wanted to wander and see where her feet would take her.  
   
 Instead she stretched out and looked at her ceiling. Seung-gil’s expression had changed after that fireball game too. She had no idea what changed of course, but she expected it was something rather magical. The boys had quite a bit of magic between all of them after all. She wondered if Seung-gil’s control was enough that he might be able to put on a fireworks show.  
   
 Her head snapped back up when she heard a small scuffle by her door.  
 “Viktor?” she called. He would sometimes hover by her door when it was closed. As much as she loved him, he was a bit of a distraction from her homework. But she was distracted anyways and… worried? For some reason?  
   
 Mari frowned. Why was she worried? What reason did she have to be worried and… afraid? She shook her head, trying to shake the cobwebs loose. What could she possibly be feeling afraid of? Her brain was trying to trick her, as it seemed to like to do to Yuuri. She let out a small sigh. It felt like only yesterday when they shared a room and they’d talk about everything. She wondered if she did the right thing to distance herself, to try to be… less of a sibling while she tried to find out just who Mari was.  
   
 She heard soft padding away from her door, she supposed that Viktor decided to go find Yuuri instead. That was fine. It was still hard to share him, but she got Viktor whenever Yuuri and Mom went to sea for a while. She wondered if Phichit and Seung-gil would stay here next time, or if they would always go with them. Seung-gil could probably find his way around the kitchen right? It was hard to remember that he was over ten times her age sometimes, except for his eyes.  
   
 She didn’t think that Mom really realised how much of a kid he still was. Mari tried to treat him just like the others but there was just… something in his eyes that always made her hesitate. Like he was holding back or something. Mari glanced at her clock. So much for homework. Well, she might as well find out if Seung-gil knew his way around the kitchen now, and he could help her prepare for dinner if he wanted to. Phichit and Yuuri were currently banned after their last hijinks with the flour.  
   
 Mari was still a bit mad that she had to be the one to clean it up when they had made the mess. She was holding out for a larger piece of dessert though, or maybe more pocket money to visit one of the nicer cafes in the next town. Mom was definitely thinking of something though, Mari could tell. She had been since Shiro-jii-chan had come by. She liked him, he seemed to keep Mom on her toes a bit. Dad wasn’t quite as crafty with his words, he was better at making Mom shine joy. Mari still had smiles on her face when she remembered a few of his gifts to her for their anniversaries, always something he had put together. Usually it was a meal, sometimes it was a night out and she only got glimmers of what happened from her friends who heard it from _their_ parents.  
   
 She reached Yuuri’s door and knocked, waiting for him to slide it open before talking. “Does Seung-gil want to help me in the kitchen?”  
 Yuuri blinked at her then looked back in his room, opening the door wider. An odd feeling curled up in Mari’s chest, and she didn’t like it. There was just Phichit lying down with cards in front of him, a slight dent where Yuuri had been lying.  
 “He said he was going to get you to play before dinner…”  
   
 Mari didn’t know why her feet took her outside, even as she yelled to Mom, and Yuuri darted down as well, claiming Seung-gil was missing. She didn’t hear Mom calling back for her to wait, she _knew_. She didn’t know how. But he was gone, he was leaving… or trying to leave. Mari rubbed her head, it was aching, but she had to focus!  
   
 As old as Seung-gil was, he was still a child. Certainly a very knowledgeable child, but Mari felt - no she _knew_ that he was acting brave. Her running slowed as she thought back to her room. No, that was ridiculous. She pressed the heel of her hand to her temple. Now was _not_ the time for a massive headache! She had to find him! Before he got hurt, or in trouble.  
   
 She ground her hands against her eyes. The flashes were worse now. Of all the damned times!  
   
 She stared as the pain faded to a manageable throb. But everything in front of her was… different. It was almost like she was in the ocean, with the sun glistening from above. The world was tinted a light blue… but the people in it were the same… almost…  
 She frowned as she started running again, where she wasn’t sure. But… it felt right. She almost went into hysterical laughter as the path in front of her sparkled, like the ocean current was taking her along with it, guiding her. She paused at the grove just before the clearing to the graves. It shone brightly, and she thought she saw a figure in front of her beckoning. It… looked a lot like Mom.  
   
 She stepped forward quietly to see a small three-tailed fox sitting in front of the graves. The flowers had started to fade, but where now bright and blooming again. There were also… a lot more than Mari remembered. She rubbed at her eyes again and the world… dimmed. She blinked for a moment, two. Her vision remained the same with that ocean view gone.  
 “Are you saying hello or goodbye?”  
 Seung-gil jumped and hissed, tails fully puffed out until he realised who was in front of him. He laid down meekly, paws over his snout.  
   
 Mari shrugged and flopped onto the ground beside him. “I like coming here too you know. But you know if you’re going somewhere you should let us know.” She knew her next words mattered, and only hoped they might be the right ones. “You might be older than us combined but I guess you can still learn things too, huh?”  
   
 The golden light that surrounded Seung-gil as he shifted was new. Mari watched with some interest as the boy sat next to her and stared at the graves.  
 “I was called here.”  
 “Funny, so was I.” The words felt right, and fell out of her mouth before she thought about them.  
 Seung-gil stared at her. For the first time an actual smile crossed his face. “I suppose you were.”  
   
 She stared at him like he was a barnacle. There were some idiots giggling over at the beach that she really wished would go away.  
 Seung-gil snorted. “You think you can really go back that easily?” He tilted his head to the side.  
 Mari just stared at him. It sounded like he was trying to be all mysterious but she had no damned clue what he was talking about. He stared at her harder and sighed, the smile dropping.  
 “Well, I suppose that’s all to really expect. I should go.”  
 That… annoyed her. His flippant attitude and just… something about the lack of _any_ regret got under her nerves.  
   
 The wind whistled through the grove, she could barely hear it through her sudden incoherent _rage_.  
 “ _What?_ ” She stared at him as he stood.  
 “There’s nothing here for me. There’s no reason for me to stay.”  
 He was wrong. Mari didn’t know how but he was just _wrong_. It vibrated through her very bones.  
 Seung-gil paused for a moment before giving her a short bow. “I thank you and your family for your hospitality, as misguided as it was.”  
 Misguided?  
 The trees crackled. She heard a million worried whispers, but none of them mattered right now because like _hell_ was _anyone_ going to just trample over her family’s feelings that way!  
 “You can tell them that yourself.” Her voice was frosty and she thought she could feel her very bones shake.  
   
 Seung-gil’s eyes were red as he faced her again. “I repaid you all in kind already.”  
 “This isn’t about payment!” He. Just. Didn’t. Get. It. Mari tried to take in a deep breath. She thought that she could hear Mom coming closer.  
 “It’s about family.”  
 “I’m not yours.” He hissed. “I never will be!”  
 “You think that blood _matters? _” Mari screamed. “It means _nothing_. Blood gives you nothing, it’s the ties you choose that matter! _**Do you really think we’d lead you so astray?!**_ ”  
   
 Mari staggered as the last words flew from her mouth. They weren’t her words! That wasn’t her voice! The screams echoed in her head and she thought that maybe one of them was her own. Her headache came back with a fiery vengeance, threatening to just rip her apart at the seams.  
 “ _ **ENOUGH!**_ ” A familiar voice cried and she thought that the ocean was back, that it was carrying her again. It rang clearer than the others, called her to it as sirens sung ships to the rocks. She was barely able to open her eyes and thought that the woman by her looked exactly like Mom, if Mom was transparent.  
   
 Seung-gil was back in his fox form, cowering among the flowers. The red had faded from his eyes and they were wide as they met hers. A child, she always reminded herself. He was older than all of them, but he was only a child.  
   
 “Leave him alone.” It was a thought, a whisper but it passed her lips. He was a child. A child that had to experience what she feared each time Yuuri and Mom went to sea. A powerful child. But still… there was always something to learn.  
   
 Before, the ocean had swirled around her, it’s current guiding her to him. This time, she reached out to the ocean, so close now that she could hear each wave and _yanked_. The screams stopped, deadened as her vision cleared. It felt strange, almost like when she was watching Seung-gil’s fire and felt both in one place and… not. Her hands were dancing along the waves, the whispers of love, the whispers of hope.  
   
 She opened her eyes and for once, she could _see_. One figure that crouched protectively in front of Seung-gil, and another in front of her. She licked her lips and she looked where they were facing. A grand fox, displaying nine-tails was challenging her great-aunt, or her grandmother. She didn’t really know which.  
   
 She had no idea where she got the courage or guts to do what she did next. She pretended to see nothing as she stood on shaky legs, only barely avoiding one specter and passing through the other to gather Seung-gil in her arms, and showed her back to the fox, to his parent.  
   
 “He’s part of our family now. I don’t give a rat’s ass if you want to visit, but if you wanted us to take care of him maybe you should have considered _asking___ first.”  
 She ignored all three of them to walk shakily out of the clearing. Seung-gil’s paws clung tightly to her shirt and she made it halfway home before meeting up with Yuuri and Dad and collapsing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is one of the chapters of this story I'm happiest with... and I hope you all enjoyed it too.


	11. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mari wakes up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Going to try to two updates either today or tomorrow to catch up for not doing one yesterday.

 Mari woke to a splitting headache and the inability to breathe. She clung to Dad as he held her, counting slowly for her to try and match. She couldn’t do it, she _couldn’t_. Something was wrong, so very wrong and she wasn’t able to fix it and she couldn’t think of just _what_ it was.  
   
 She could hear voices arguing outside the door before there was a scampering of paws and somehow both Seung-gil and Viktor were by her. Tears began to pour out of her and just she couldn’t stop. Nothing could stop and everything hurt too much.  
   
 Then she only knew warmth. She was aware of distant yelling and screaming, but for once the roar of the tide in her mind stopped and she could still hear Dad counting. This time, she was able to slow down. Her eyes had closed again and she opened them to see Seung-gil, back in human form. He nodded once, and turned to walk away.  
 “Wait!” Dad called. “What did you do?”  
 Seung-gil paused before looking at the floor. “I changed the scenery.” He gave her a deadpan stare. “There’s too much damned water here.”  
 A hysterical laugh finally bubbled out of Mari as she hugged Viktor close to her. Somehow that seemed just like a thing for him to say, but she had no idea how she knew that.  
 “Watch your language,” Dad scolded. Somehow that made her just laugh harder. She had absolutely no clue what was going on now, but it felt… like things would be okay. She let her grip loosen and Viktor licked her face several times as she felt her eyes get heavy again, and this time went into a peaceful slumber.  
   
 When she woke again she was in her bed, with two lumps lying by her feet. She knew that one was Viktor, but she swore if that was Yuuri in his selkie form again getting water on her comforter she was going to hang him over the fire. A soft nudge with her foot didn’t give her any wet feeling though, instead it was… warm, almost toasty and Mari found herself almost drifting back to sleep. Instead she got a huff from the other bundle and a cold nose against her foot that had her yelping and rolling off her futon.  
   
 She glowered at Viktor, whose tongue was lolling at her like he did a good thing. Seung-gil’s head barely poked up before he got up to curl into the spot she just left.  
 “Rude,” she muttered. Well, it wasn’t really since she should be awake now. She could tell that the sun was up high, so she was behind on all of her chores already. She nudged at the futon, meeting Seung-gil’s glare.  
 “Put away the futon when you get up if you’re sleeping in.”  
 Seung-gil huffed before stretching out and hopping off the futon. Mari sighed inwardly, just like a kid. Getting up just to avoid more work.  
 “You’re such a brat you know.”  
 He sneezed at her as she cleaned the room, watching her all the while.  
 “You know that’s a little creepy right?”  
 Seung-gil sneezed again before getting into a play-tussle with Viktor. Really, what was she going to do with two tiny canines.  
   
 She yawned as she opened the door, the two small figures darting out and down the stairs ahead of her.  
 “Seung-gil!” Yuuri’s voice cried. “Does that mean Mari’s finally awake?”  
 Finally? She had only been asleep until afternoon. Given how her head felt back then, she really wasn’t too surprised though.  
 “Awake and ready to trounce you,” she joked as she descended. She meant for it to be lighthearted, but something in her tone went off when she saw Yuuri’s face.  
 “Mari!” Yuuri darted into her with the force of a tiny torpedo, sending her tumbling back onto the stairs.  
 “Hey! Watch it!”  
 Yuuri’s grip only grew tighter and she thought she could feel her shirt getting wet.  
 “Geez, what’s with this. It’s only afternoon.”  
 “It’s the afternoon of the second day.” Seung-gil’s voice slid over the group.  
   
 Mari stared at him as he popped a lychee into his mouth, chewing slowly. Second day? She had slept through an entire day? That was… more than unusual for her.  
 “It was possible you wouldn’t wake up.”  
   
 That… That thought terrified her. How was it that that pain would render her comatose? It was just a really bad headache right? She winced as Seung-gil flicked the seed at her forehead.  
 “Don’t be such an idiot or it’ll be just as bad next time. Your mother said she knows someone that can help when I described what happened.”  
   
 Mari was beyond confused. She wasn’t a selkie, they had confirmed that. From what Seung-gil was saying though, she was… something else? Was that even possible? Mom’s side had all been selkies and humans, and Dad’s was just human. How could she possibly be anything else other than those two?  
   
 Seung-gil rolled his eyes. “Surely you’ve heard of special humans too.”  
 Mari blinked. How the hell? She scowled at the fox. “Get out of my head.”  
 Seung-gil shrugged and she felt a pressure leave… then something else building. She screwed her eyes shut.  
 She heard him scoff. “At least know what you’re asking. Open your eyes, idiot.”  
   
 Mari obeyed and could see the currents in the air again. There were bright spots in the room. Seung-gil was glowing with a red fire, Phichit was biting his lip with a blue-earthy colour. Yuuri, firmly attached to her was glowing a brilliant blue-green. She would almost call it neon with how blinding it felt.  
 She unfocused her eyes a bit and the swirls of the room disappeared, just leaving the halos of colours around the boys.  
 She could hear Seung-gil’s smile. “Much better. You’ll get the hang of it eventually.”  
 “The hang of _what?_ ”  
 Seung-gil shrugged and just waved his hand, rippling red through the air.  
 “Whatever it is.”  
 Mari sighed and let her head thunk back against the stairs.  
 “Yuuri, let your sister up. You both know better than to block the staircase!”  
   
 Mari never thought she’d be so happy to hear Mom scolding them. She glanced towards her. Her eyes automatically focused for a moment before she remembered to slightly unfocus them. God, she was going to feel sick if she had to keep doing this.  
   
 “Mari, how are you feeling? You still look a little ill.” Mom’s hand was cool against her forehead.  
 “Better,” she admitted. She couldn’t stop staring at Mom’s muted blue-green. It was almost like it was tinted with grey. “I… uh… I figured out what I was seeing? Kinda?”  
 Mom’s eyes were kind, always kind as she just knelt to listen. That was what Mari loved about her, she always had just enough time for them.  
 “I think I was seeing ghosts?”  
 “No way!” Phichit smacked the table hard, excitement in every fiber of his being. Yuuri’s eyes just went wide.  
 “Uhm… I think… I think I saw Auntie and Grandma? They… they looked a lot like you. Especially Grandma…” Mari’s voice trailed off as she thought about what that meant.  
 Mom nodded, her hand covering Mari’s for a moment.  
   
 “They were pretty bad-ass,” Seung-gil commented.  
 Mom’s mouth opened, before twisting shut.  
 Mari rolled her eyes. “Language!” Seung-gil was still a kid, and maybe she could help Mom realise that. He was still kid in all the ways that really mattered, just with more years and maturity under his belt. He still had plenty to learn. Like manners.  
 “You’re not my mother,” he shot back. Mari scowled and stood to her full height, ignoring the spinning room around her. She really had to get used to this weird feeling of always being in water.  
 “Nope, but I saved your-” she bit her tongue a bit. “Butt. So, you owe me at least a bit of respect.”  
 Seung-gil rolled his eyes. “I paid you back for that already. Several times over by conventional means.”  
 “Yeah? Well who says any of this is conventional?”  
 Seung-gil stared at her before ducking his head. She was pretty sure he was hiding a smile.  
 “ _Mari!_ ”  
 “What?” Mari shrugged. “He’s like Yuuri, but just… older.”  
 Mom stared at her, too stunned for words before letting out a smile of her own.  
   
 “But seriously, what the hell happened?” Mari was fairly certain there were some flaws in her memory. Like seeing two ghosts face down a massive fox.  
 “Probably everything as you remember it.” Seung-gil made a face. “As embarrassing as it was.”  
 “Embarrassing?” Mari tilted her head slightly.  
  _You claimed him as family._  
 Mari whirled her head around, her eyes focusing for a moment on another figure. For a moment she felt sick and closed her eyes.  
   
 She didn’t notice before, but her grandmother was tinted a pasty, almost sickly blue.  
  _It will pass._ The voice was melancholy, sorrowful as the specter’s chill passed through her. _I only wanted to see… to see her one last time._  
 “What do you mean last?” Mari whispered. She was warm suddenly, engulfed by the scent and feel of Mom.  
  _Hiroko… My dearest… my strongest…_ Mari didn’t understand, weren’t ghosts supposed to make some level of sense? She was a ghost right? She wasn’t just going crazy?  
  _Tell her I love her still, and always._  
 Mari opened her eyes, it felt too much like a goodbye for her to hide away like this. Or wait, wasn’t that how evil spirits worked?  
   
 “Coward.”  
 She barely heard Seung-gil’s words before her eyes flew open in defiance. Her grandmother smiled once more, pain in her eyes before a spectral fire enveloped her.  
 “I… what?” Mari choked. What the hell was she seeing? What was going _on?_ “I don’t _understand._ ”  
 “Mari…” Yuuri came and hugged her tight too. She squeezed her eyes shut again and hugged him tightly to her. She didn’t care for Seung-gil’s knowing huff. She was a bit grateful to Phichit when he dragged the fox off for something else and it was just the three of them.  
   
 There was only the sound of the ocean around her, and the warmth of its waters surrounding her. She was home. She was home. Nothing would take her from it. Nothing could take her from it. Mari forced herself to breathe evenly, even as the tears welled up in her eyes and the ocean manifested itself around her again.  
 “Grandma… I think Grandma was saying goodbye?” She didn’t know why the words were choking in her throat. She never met her, only barely knew her from Mom’s stories. There were far more stories about their aunt.  
 “She… she wanted me to tell you something.”  
 Mom just stayed still, her warmth and comfort never budging even an inch. Mari swallowed and took another breath.  
 “She said she loves you still, and always. Why wouldn’t she, though?”  
   
 Mom’s hug tightened slightly before she released her a little. Mari stared at her. Was she… crying? Crying was too strong of a word, but it was the closest to it she had ever seen her to it.  
 “I… said some rather mean things at her grave before.” Mom guided her and Yuuri to the table, pouring them all some tea. Mari glanced around the room. It was… almost calm now, the tides easing out. It faded in and out as she blinked, but very rarely disappeared.  
   
 “I was like you once, but…” Mom sighed and drank some of her tea. “My mother wasn’t… entirely there. I would catch her staring at the ocean… then my father would say or do something and she would look back and have this… smile on her face.”  
   
 Mari wondered what else she was holding back. What she wasn’t saying just because it was her and Yuuri. She wondered what story Shiro-ojii-san knew, and perhaps… he would tell her if she asked him very nicely. Or bribed him with katsudon.  
   
 “She did the best for me that she could do though,” Mom murmured.  
 Mari perked up, curious. Mom barely talked about Grandma, even now it looked almost painful. Flashes of yellow flickered through Mom’s blue-green.  
 “She sent me away.”  
   
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a little more about Hiroko, and a way more solid understanding of what's been going on with Mari. Hopefully you guys enjoyed it?


	12. Melancholy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phichit thinks of home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oomph. Sorry my flight was delayed by two hours yesterday (but at least we made it off the ground) and ate the time I meant for posting. So there won't be a double chapter this week since I'm away for work training but I should still manage the one a day til we're done. I'm really sorry for the spotty updates.
> 
> Also it was brought to my attention that I duplicated Ch. 9 into Ch. 10. The correct Ch 10 is now uploaded so please give that a gander if you read 9 twice.
> 
> Thank you for continuing to read <3<3<3

 Phichit woke to the sun shining on his scales. It was how most mornings in the spring started here at the inn, and it seemed fall was following the same pattern. As much as he loved the heat, and the wood, and the springs… he really missed home. He missed his rock. Seung-gil was almost warm enough, but not the same as Mother’s scales. It was nice to talk to Seung-gil sometimes though, to reminisce over their mountains, as different as they were.  
   
 To be fair, Seung-gil’s mountain was definitely better in every sense but one. It wasn’t home. He was grateful to the Katsuki’s for trying to make him feel at home. They accepted his naga form in their home, let him roam freely, and helped him during molts. Most importantly, he loved their kindness and the brightness that they tried to give him. He could see it sometimes when Aunt Hiroko gave him an extra egg when his eyes kept getting drawn over to the ocean. He was young, far too young to make the journey on his own. He also didn’t want to impose on Aunt Hiroko who was still training Yuuri how to properly survive in the sea, or as she said it, ‘read the sea’.  
   
 Phichit found those lessons fascinating, even if he didn’t quite understand the intricacies. Seung-gil didn’t care overall and lately he seemed oddly attached to Mari as well. Something had happened in that glade and Phichit had no clue what it was, and it was only a passing curiosity. What he found far more curious and probed as much as she allowed, was Mari’s new powers. She called it a type of ESP, but denied it was actual ESP. He had no idea where that ‘not really’ came into play, since as far as he could tell it was that she just had another set of perception now. Much like how he was heat sensitive and was able to see heat. Or Yuuri’s ability to sense the currents and play in them.  
   
 His eyes were drawn back to the horizon. They promised they would come, that they would visit. It was _years_ now and Phichit was beginning to think the worst.  
 “It’s not going to move if you keep staring at it.”  
 Phichit jumped, fading into the wallpaper as Mari laughed.  
 “The horizon. It doesn’t move.”  
 “Of course not.” Phichit kicked himself inwardly. “I wasn’t moving!”  
 Mari shook her head and gave him a sly smile. “I mean that there will always be a horizon, something you haven’t seen.”  
   
 Phichit sniffed. If he travelled enough he would certainly see everything! It was his dream to visit everywhere, to learn. To just… _be_ everywhere.  
 “Don’t act like that. Even if you did visit them all, by the time you came back to the first one it would have changed. Nothing stays the same you know.”  
 Oh. She had a point. Phichit deflated a little.  
 “But… it just means it never ends. A bit like you and your brightness.” Mari leaned against the doorframe.  
 “I’m not always bright,” Phichit mumbled.  
 Mari shrugged. “Neither am I. But even when you’re dimmer than normal you have this…” Mari waved a hand over him.  
 “I dunno. It’s pretty.” She shrugged.  
 Phichit sighed. It was sad that his energy, or whatever it was that she saw was ‘pretty’, what the heck did he look like normally then!  
 “Chill. Geez, this is still such a pain.” Mari rubbed the back of her neck. “I mean, I only figured out what that pattern meant because of Yuuri’s anxiety so I thought I’d check in on you.”  
 “Oh.” Phichit let go of the anger he had been holding. That was actually rather kind of her. Potentially even useful given how prone Yuuri was to anxiety. It was something he thought would go away as his best friend got older, but if anything it just seemed to divert into new facets, new fears.  
   
 “It’s fine, if anything it’s helping me figure out all… this.” Mari waved at her eyes. Phichit glanced at her. There was a weird colour shifting thing to her eyes now, but he wasn’t sure if she had that before.  
 “It’s hard to figure out, you know? So. What were you feeling?”  
 Phichit stared and thought about how he could quantify exactly how he felt, or wait which moment did she mean?  
 “Uh. When?”  
 “After your ‘oh’.”  
 Phichit flushed. Ah, he wasn’t even sure how to word that emotion. He shifted back into his humanoid form, partially for the practice and partially because he knew she felt more comfortable talking to an actual face she could see.  
 “I was thinking you were being nice?” He rubbed the back of his head. “I mean… you didn’t have to tell me all this?”  
 “Well you didn’t have to tell us all the shi- crap that you could do when you came here either. Just because I’m figuring my stuff out doesn’t mean I shouldn’t share it. Besides you aren’t an as- I mean…” she made a face. “You don’t treat me like I’m stupid while I’m learning.”  
 Phichit frowned.  
 Mari waved towards upstairs. “Seung-gil.”  
   
 Ah. The secretive fox. Phichit was fairly certain that he just treated Mari like that because she insisted on treating him like a kid. Phichit actually enjoyed watching that. In a way it made him feel even more at home… as home as it could get anyways.  
   
 Pain lanced through his head and he let out a yelp, glowering at Mari.  
 “You’re sulking again.”  
 “What? Am I not allowed to sulk?”  
 Mari shrugged. “Some of it’s probably good, but well… too much probably isn’t.” She let out a half smile. “How would I know?”  
   
 Phichit opened his mouth to retort before he remembered what happened when Mari last craved something with all her being. He turned his gaze back to the horizon.  
 “Sorry. I forgot.”  
 “Lucky,” Mari sighed. “It gives me nightmares sometimes.”  
 Phichit stared at her. Gave her nightmares? How so? She wasn’t the one that was hurt! Yuuri was fine now, but he remembered him falling asleep clutching his seal skin sometimes. He had no idea how Yuuri had managed to forgive her for that.  
 Mari glanced at him. “Mom didn’t talk about the side effects of someone taking or accepting a selkie skin to me. It… It’s still terrible I did it.” She opened her mouth and closed it again and Phichit found himself curious to what she might say. Nothing else came from her mouth and instead she stared at the same spot he did.  
   
 He couldn’t handle this silence.  
 “What’s it look like?”  
 “What?” Mari stared at him.  
 “Everything. What was it like?” Phichit wondered how it might possible be to see another world all of a sudden. It must have been magnificent.  
   
 “I thought being dead would be nicer. If I wasn’t trying to find Seung-gil… if I wasn’t so into my own damn head, I might’ve.” She shrugged. “At least that’s what he says and he’s all ‘old and all-knowing’.” Mari rolled her eyes and Phichit snickered. Seung-gil definitely gave off that aura every now and then. There were things they definitely taught him, but there was far more that he was teaching them.  
 “Is he teaching you about...?”  
 “If you can even call that teaching,” Mari scoffed. “It’s like me claiming I can make better katsudon than Mom.”  
 Phichit laughed at the thought. No one’s katsudon was better than Aunt Hiroko’s.  
 “See?” Mari’s smile was a little warmer now.  
   
 “You’re trying to cheer me up.”  
 “It’s working, isn’t it?”  
 Phichit hummed and laid down on his stomach. “Is it pretty?”  
 Mari rolled her eyes and nudged at him with a foot. “It’s always pretty. You’re all a bunch of pretty boys, geez. Let a girl shine a little too.”  
 Phichit grinned. “So? What does it look like?”  
 Mari sighed. “You aren’t going to let that question go are you?”  
 “Nope.” Phichit normally relented for some questions, especially if they seemed to baffle others. He had gotten used to some of the strange looks and more than once someone ran off with a grand idea based off of some question he asked. It meant he knew a little more now than before about computers. Unfortunately he couldn’t do much with any of that knowledge, but he was definitely going to keep an eye on those.  
   
 But other magical beings? Those fascinated him. He had no idea how Yuuri and Aunt Hiroko’s shifting worked, and he doubted he ever would. He only half understood his own, but Seung-gil’s was so obvious it was almost funny. Mari though… Mari was related to both of them and the way she saw everything might be a hint for him to figure everything out.  
   
 She had that look on her face right now too. Sometimes he and Yuuri would go and try to see if she could play. If she was stuck on a hard problem she tended to stick her tongue in one corner of her mouth and they would leave her alone quietly. If she was still like that after a game or two they would send in Vicchan to force her to take a short break at least. Mother always told him it was important to take breaks. Phichit felt his mood waver slightly and that was when Mari spoke.  
   
 “The first time I saw it I thought that I had to be underwater.”  
 His eyes fixed on her. “How?”  
 Mari spread her arms. “I don’t know. It was like I could… see each wave, every current and one was lining the way to Seung-gil.”  
 “Oh.” Well, that was a little disappointing. There wasn’t much that he could do with that information, but it was information regardless.  
 “In the clearing though…” Pain flickered across Mari’s face and Phichit turned back to her.  
 “It was like when you watch a wave crash against the rocks and I was the rock. It…” Mari made a face. “If Grandma and Auntie weren’t there too I don’t know what might have happened.”  
 “What did happen?” Phichit didn’t think anyone thought to tell him. All he knew was that Uncle Toshiya and Yuuri had dragged Mari back screaming, clutching her head. The screams barely quietened when Auntie entered the room and then Yuuri had grabbed him and they spent the rest of the day at the beach.  
   
 Mari kept quiet for a long while. There was only the sounds of the birds for a while and Phichit started to think that she was trying to outwait his question. He could be just as stubborn as Yuuri though, and his curiosity _demanded_ an answer.  
 “I’m not really sure,” Mari admitted. “But… there’s something Seung-gil mentioned that I want to try. Do you want to come with me?”  
 Phichit lit up. Seeing her abilities up close? There was no chance that he was giving that up!  
 Mari let out a laugh. “Okay, I’ll just let Mom know. Go get a coat, or something.”  
 Phichit grinned and scrambled back upstairs to the closet. He almost tripped on Yuuri reading his book. His friend just gave him a half smile when he said he was going out for a bit before returning to his material. Yuuri’s focus was so amazing sometimes.  
   
 Mari barely waited for him at the top of the stairs before she started heading down, leaving him to trip after her. Darn it, sometimes she was just so mean! She knew just how to get to him and his darned curiosity! Although, she also never let him down. Even things he already knew she had an interesting way of presenting them to be more interesting. He continued to chase after her as she started a light jog down towards the water. He hesitated a moment as she passed the woods. He knew that the place was special to the Katsuki’s, so he just… It always felt wrong to him when he got too close, like he was intruding on their family time.  
   
 It was odd because he didn’t feel like he was intruding when it was their dinner time, or stories with Aunt Hiroko. But this just felt too... intimate.  
 “Come on! We don’t bite,” Mari cackled before dipping her head back into the clearing. Phichit took a deep breath and for the first time broke through the circle of trees.  
   
 He supposed that the clearing was normally quite beautiful. But as it was, everything seemed to be faded, almost lifeless. He frowned a little as he saw one barren patch in particular.  
 “It’s been like that since…” Mari trailed off and shook her head. A set look crossed her face, one he hadn’t really seen on her before. He watched as she took a deep breath and closed her eyes.  
   
 Phichit stared as the air around them seemed to shift. It was both familiar… and not. He had been here before… or somewhere similar. He stared around him.  
 “ _You’re tied here._ ”  
 Phichit jolted, looking down to see a transparent woman crouching among the flowers. Her face was riveted with tear stains. He also realised, she looked a lot like Aunt Hiroko.  
 “Uhm. I’m sorry to intrude?” How did you greet ghosts even? Or spirits? He felt so out of his depth now. There was only so much that books could teach him, and Hasetsu wasn’t exactly the best place to learn. That was part of what he loved about going with Yuuri, he was always learning.  
   
 She gave him a small smile and nodded towards Mari.  
 “ _Her mother’s sister. I cared for her after she passed. I didn’t survive long enough to meet Mari or Yuuri though. Not beyond the blossoms here. Not without help._ ”  
 Phichit’s jaw dropped slightly. Mari was amazing! He looked over at her, seeing the sweat beading on her brow and the lack of focus to her eyes.  
 “Does it hurt her? Should I get her to stop?” Phichit worried. Mari told him she wanted to show him something, and he bet that this was it. But it looked like she was working too hard.  
 “ _She’s fine for now. Learning control is hard, as you know. I’ll make sure she doesn’t go too far down the path._ ”  
 Phichit nodded, but had no idea what path Second Aunt was talking about.  
 “Is this what she sees?”  
 The ghost shrugged slightly. “ _I believe so. It’s more likely she sees more than she can show._ ”  
 Phichit understood why Mari had such a hard time describing it. There was just a… feeling to it. He couldn’t quite grasp his familiarity with it either though.  
 “Do… you know why this is... “ Phichit made a face. “This feels…”  
 “ _It’s similar to how you store forms, when you are neither here nor there. You see it, but you don’t. Dear Mari can see it for what it is._ ”  
   
 Phichit nodded. That made some sense, and also explained how she always reacted to them now. Sometimes she knew that he was angry before he did, or when he was lonely. He paused to think for a moment. Was that why she was spending so much time with Seung-gil lately too? He was lonely?  
 “ _May I ask a favour, of the naga?_ ”  
 Phichit blinked out of his thoughts and gave a helpless smile. “I can’t do much. I’m not old enough.” That and he didn’t know enough.  
 “ _But you’re better for this than I, or Hiroko will be._ ”  
 Phichit frowned. “Well. Do I get something for this favour?” His mother had taught him that much at least. Never lend out his powers for nothing.  
 She nodded. “ _Something you want to know dearly._ ”  
   
 Well, he had no idea what that might be, but fair trades were fair right?  
 “I’ll try.”  
 “ _Listen to her, try to help her understand. Ask her._ ”  
 Phichit frowned. That certainly all sounded like things he could do and answered all the questions he had about that favour at the same time. So he needed to help Mari just by asking the right questions?  
 “Okay.”  
 The ghost pointed to the sea, where darkness emitted from the glowing lights around them.  
 “ _They’re coming for you. They waited as storms would trail in their wake. They’ll arrive before year’s end. Wake her._ ”  
 Phichit’s jaw dropped. His parents were coming! They were bringing storms with them too! He processed the rest of what Second Aunt said and started to shake Mari.  
   
 His parents were coming! They were alive, and hadn’t forgotten him!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It half kills me that at Phichit's age in this computers were only barely becoming household items and the internet was a twinkle in the world. We get some new characters next chapter ;)


End file.
